


Dirty Dancing

by LilLegalLoli94



Series: Dirty Dancing Universe [1]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora's a bit more into the classics, Catra can be a tease, Catra's more into modern hip-hop, Characters are legal age, Eventual Smut, F/F, Sexual Tension, catradora, dance academy au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2020-01-25 17:11:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 49,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18578908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilLegalLoli94/pseuds/LilLegalLoli94
Summary: After being offered a full ride scholarship for Brightmoon Dance Academy, Adora leaves her life behind to build up a future for herself. However, after some college stressors take their toll on Adora's health, Bow and Glimmer decide to help her relax with a night at a local dance club. Adora expected to have a nice time, to take her mind off things and relax. What she doesn't expect is her old childhood friend working it on the dance floor.-OR-Adora and Catra doing a bit of bump and grind.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly never write fanfiction with established characters and personalities, too afraid I won't do the characters justice or I make them too OOC, but inspiration hit and I couldn't resist. I hope you enjoy it.

Adora could insist that Bow and Glimmer’s persistence wore her thin. She could say they wouldn’t have let her work alone in peace if she hadn’t agreed. But they knew her resolve wasn’t so weak to give into their constant pleads and bargains. And she knew that, if they really sensed she didn’t want to go, they wouldn’t have forced her to do something she wasn’t comfortable with.  
  
And their words did hold some truth to them. She was overworked, over-stressed. This final choreography project was kicking her ass with a creative block that prevented her from coming up with anything worthwhile. She was running herself into the ground, operating on no sleep and all caffeine which, of course, wasn’t healthy for anybody.  
  
It was Bow who found her knocked out in one of the practice studios with some form of classical “thinking” music playing on her portable bluetooth speaker. It was Bow who messaged Glimmer alerting her to the state he found her in, mumbling a jumble of incoherent and, quite honestly, physically impossible dance routines in her sleep. And it was Bow and Glimmer who insisted that she take the night off to not think about school and just let loose and find something enjoyable to occupy the evening instead.  
  
Adora was reluctant to take the break. There wasn’t time to relax, a part of her mind would nag at her. She couldn’t afford the luxury, it was too risky. But Glimmer wouldn’t have it. She wouldn’t let her go on thinking that one night of fun was going to ruin her, her grades, or her future. She was much too talented, and Bow agreed that she would definitely figure something out tomorrow. But tonight, she needed to let herself rest and have a chance to feel refreshed and somewhat normal.  
  
Again, they would not force her if she really did not want to go out tonight, but they would see to it that she leave her school work alone. They could always just Netflix and chill, order some pizza and just enjoy each others’ company if she had decided to stay in. However, part of her did want to go out, to just relax and dance without it having to relate back to her course work. Part of her thought it was just what she needed, that it could even bring back the inspiration and spark she required to finally push past this block.  
  
That was how she found herself outside of the “Black Garnet” dance club with its muffled music leaking past the cracks of the closed door. The stand outside the door read “feat. DJ Entrapta” and Adora wondered if that was their stage handle or real name.  
  
“Her mixes are really good.” Bow spoke into Adora’s ear, snapping her attention from the sign, “She’s, like, a genius with electronic music. You can’t just sit still and listen, it’s like her beats compel you to move.”  
  
Adora gave a polite chuckle, she didn’t get it a hundred percent but she at least understood that Bow was obviously a fan.  
  
“Then what are we standing around out here for?? Let’s get in there!” Glimmer’s hands pushed at the two’s backsides, excitedly herding them closer towards the door.  
  
As the bouncer was checking their IDs to confirm their ages as well as the legitimacy of the identification cards, the crowd could be heard roaring and hollering and cheering on something they were enthusiastically surrounding. Adora, curious as she was, tried to get a glance of what they were looking at, but found the surrounding bodies much to dense to catch even a sliver of a window. However, judging by the scene and the crowd’s reception, it was easy enough to wager a guess.  
  
“What’s going on over there?” Glimmer’s voice suddenly came into Adora’s ear, the abrupt shift making her jump slightly as she turned to look at her.  
  
“Oh, I can’t really see from over here, so-” she started to respond, her shoulders easing off the tension, but was cut off before she could finish.  
  
“Well then, we’ll have to get closer, won’t we?” the pink haired girl took hold of the blonde’s hand as she pushed her way through the crowd, “C’mon, Bow! Before we miss it!” she shouted back, but the tall boy was already hot on their heels to follow their path. Glimmer, ever so assertive to get what she wanted, found her group of friends a spot within the front of the surrounding crowd where they could easily see the spectacle that got them so hyped up and excited.  
  
Adora’s hypothesis was proven correct upon their arrival: it was a young woman, dressed in a crimson sports bra and burgundy joggers, dancing to the hip-hop trap beats that burst through the speakers. But she wasn’t sure if the thudding in her chest came from the bass, the stomping of feet, or the striking heterochromatic eyes she spied between the shifts of the woman’s wild and thick black hair.  
  
Catra? The name flashed in her mind along with the memories associated between the two women.  
  
What kind of coincidence was this? After years of seeing neither hide nor hair of her, how did Adora’s string of luck lead her into this kind of chance encounter? Of all the nights in existence and all the dance clubs for miles upon miles, she happened to find the deeply rooted childhood friend on this night in this club that she stood in right this very second.  
  
“Get it, gurl!!” a woman’s jeering cry stirred Adora out of her own head, her eyes now forced to pay attention to what everyone else had already come to conclude.  
  
Catra really was getting it on, her body rocking and shaking and thrusting to the rhythm, working her assets without a care for their staring eyes, nor mercy for Adora’s own gawking gaze. Watching her now after all this time apart really drove home just how long it had been since they were together, taking the same dance classes, practicing the same routines, and spending every waking free time immersed in each other’s company. The initial distance back then was jarring, a disturbance to a routine as natural as breathing. Now… now it made Adora’s chest clench to watch Catra, her best friend Catra, dancing as freely as she ever wanted and having grown so much without Adora’s knowledge or presence.  
  
She couldn’t tell if this tightness she was feeling was excitement to be able to watch Catra dance again or anguish that she was only seeing this because Catra hadn’t noticed her yet among the crowd. So engrossed in the music, it was as if she was in her own little world and Adora was left at the same level as the gathered crowd: a dance enthusiast watching at a distance.  
  
As the music was bleeding into the next set, Catra saw it fit to take the chance to cool down and let her body rest and rehydrate. That was when Adora felt a hand pressing to her shoulder, grounding her back to reality and out of her submerging thoughts.  
  
“Adora?” she looked over to attach the hand to Glimmer, “You okay? You had this weird distant look on your face this whole time.”  
  
“You need to sit down?” Bow interjected as he leaned into her opposite side, sandwiching Adora in the middle of their concerned gazes.  
  
“I’m fine, really. Just… had a bit of a blast from the past.” Adora answered, her eyes drawing back to find Catra by the bar.  
  
The two followed her line of sight, “You know her?” Glimmer asked, staring at the olive skinned woman, looking for some form of recognition.  
  
“She’s my friend… well… was my friend.” a somber look came to Adora’s face as she had to force the correction out of her mouth. It left a bitter taste on her tongue to refer to their relationship in the past tense.  
  
“Was?” Glimmer pressed on.  
  
“It’s a bit complicated, but, long story short, we had a falling out a couple years back. I haven’t seen or spoke to her since. Didn’t think I’d find her here.”  
  
“That’s heavy.” Bow commented in a sympathetic tone.  
  
“Yeah,” Glimmer agreed, “But, you know what this means though, right?”  
  
A brow raised on Adora’s face, she did not know what this meant.  
  
“Obviously something wanted you two to meet again. I mean, what were the chances, right? This has to be a sign that it’s time you two fell back in.” There was a determined glint in Glimmer’s eyes as she spoke. She had no idea what the two’s falling out was even about, but, by the look in Adora’s eyes, she was ready and aching to mend things.  
  
However, despite Glimmer’s confidence in her assumption, Adora still looked far too uncertain, “I don’t know… I mean… it’s already been three years. If she wanted to patch things up by now, she would have said something, right?”  
  
“So? Maybe she was waiting for you to make the first move instead.”  
  
“But-”  
  
“Look,” Glimmer cut her off quickly before she could let another excuse muddle up any resolve she had left tonight. Her hands planted firmly against Adora’s shoulders and spun her around to face the bar, “See that girl there? That there is a relationship just waiting to be revived. If you don’t do this now, then you never will. Who knows when this kind of chance will come up again, so it’s now or never.”  
  
“But what do I even say?” Adora was getting a bit more panicked the more she was being convinced that she should go talk to her.  
  
“You’re smart, use that big, beautiful brain of yours.” And with that, Glimmer shoved her forward, starting her walk towards the noirette and forcing her to act first and think later.  
  
“You really sure that was such a good idea?” Bow asked, watching Adora stiffly soldier walk her way over towards the bar.  
  
“Trust me,” Glimmer clapped a hand over his shoulder, “This is just what she needs to turn this into a worthwhile night.”  
  
Adora’s body was operating on autopilot, following the motions to advance forward while her mind was preoccupied with coming up with some kind of conversation starter. She insisted to herself that she’d give a simple greeting. She insisted to herself that she could always start with Catra’s little display. Engraving those into her battle plan had been simple enough, but the worse part of overcome, what she couldn’t seem to fathom, was that this was just Catra. Not some hideous monster hell-bent on ruining her life, just her normal, run of the mill “Catra”. The Catra she grew up with, the Catra she shared everything with and vice versa. But, staring at her now, how she’d grown, how she’d matured, it was proving to be a difficult pill to swallow.  
  
Before she knew it, her feet had already arrived by the bar, stopped behind Catra with the other too preoccupied on her phone to notice.  
She implored her brain to connect with her mouth, to say something before she started looking like some kind of bar creep.  
  
“Hey Catra.” she finally spoke up, her voice lower than she would have liked but it was a start.  
  
There was a subtle jump from the stool the noirette was seated, instantly finding recognition in the voice before turning around to look the blonde up and down. Teal blue and amber gold irises traced every bit of the familiar figure in front of her, from her striking baby blues to her sculpted thighs in those high-rise shorts of hers.  
  
“Hey Adora.” Catra’s tone sounded a bit off, caught off guard by the unexpected, but there was nothing malicious or telling that she wanted to be left alone.  
  
A good sign, Adora internally breathed a sigh of relief as the worst possible scenario was successfully avoided. However, she had been too absorbed in her own self-satisfaction in herself that she nearly forgot that conversations usually go for longer than the initial greeting.  
  
“I saw you dancing back there.” she made a quick gesture back towards the dance floor, “It was, um, you were really good.” She forced a laugh past her throat to clear the nervous lump forming in her esophagus, “Glad to see you haven’t lost your touch one bit.”  
  
Any sort of startling surprise Catra had left remaining on her face quickly melted away into a coy and smug smirk as she breathed out a chuckle, “What? Did you expect anything less from me?”  
  
It was that one simple shift at the corner of her lips that finally allowed Adora to relax, to start to have some expectation that this was going to turn out just fine.  
  
“Well, you were the one that liked to skip practice.” Adora retorted, answering with a knowing smirk of her own as she crossed her arms over her chest.  
  
“That’s just because I’m that naturally gifted.” she shrugged her shoulder and Adora couldn’t help but giggle at Catra’s ‘I’m just too good’ attitude.  
  
Right, this was Catra. Same ol’ smug, overly confident Catra.  
  
“So, you want to sit down, or…” Catra’s voice trailed as she nodded towards the bar stool on her left.  
  
“No one else is using it?”  
  
“Do you see anyone else’s ass using it?”  
  
Adora took her up on the offer, planting herself comfortably on the cushion before turning the seat slightly to continue their conversation.  
  
For the most part, everything was going well. They were laughing, reminiscing about old memories between the two and sharing stories that happened to either one of them when they were apart. It was like Adora had her old friend back, and she couldn’t help but relish in how good it felt. Sure, her new friends were amazing, she couldn’t think of any real gripe she had with any of them, but being around Catra was different. It was a different level of soothing comfort when she was nearby, a different kind of wanting to spend time with her. One she was never able to replace.  
  
The laughter of a passing joke died down on Adora’s face, her smile softening with a hint of sadness in her brow, “I really missed this.”  
  
Catra, a little behind in Adora’s thinking, responded back, “Missed what?”  
  
“This. Us. Just talking and joking around like we used to.” she answered, her tone getting a bit excited as she offered the clarification. “I just missed it… I missed you, Catra.”  
  
That was when Catra’s smile died on her face, turning her eyes into the glass of water sitting in front of her, fingertips tracing the rim mindlessly. “You know, you wouldn’t have to miss anything if you’d just stayed.” the comment left her lips softly, part of her wanting to enjoy this reunion a bit longer but the other part couldn’t let the bitter, negative feelings go.  
  
Adora was left speechless and visibly hurt by the comment, which Catra actively refused to acknowledge, but she swallowed it down and steeled herself, “It wasn’t easy for me either.” she paused, waiting for some kind of response but continued as she saw none coming, “I had to start all over in a new town, in a new school and with new people. Those first few weeks were hard for me… and you and your silent treatment didn’t make it any better.” Her eyes glared in Catra’s direction, recalling how she needed Catra then more than ever before and how she couldn’t count on her at all.  
  
“So what do you want? A fucking medal? You want me to apologize or something? That was your choice, nobody forced you to take their scholarship.”  
  
“You’re right, no one forced me and it was my decision to go, but you can’t be mad at me for wanting to make something of myself. Brightmoon has opportunities that the Horde could never match.”  
  
The noirette’s irritation made itself notably heard through a loud, exaggerated groan and a roll of her mismatched eyes.  
  
“You know, if you were so heartbroken about it, you could have come too.” Adora’s tone grew softer, gentler, “You’re a talented dancer, Catra. I know you would have made it into the program. Money wouldn’t have even been an issue for someone as good as you.”  
  
“So you just want me to follow after you like some loyal pet.” she grumbled through clenched teeth.  
  
“That’s not what I’m saying at all. I just mean that you could make something of yourself at Brightmoon-”  
  
“What?!” That had been the last straw for Catra. She had reached her level of tolerance for this whole topic of discussion and now she was just done. “You seriously think I need to be in your preppy little dance school to make something of myself?! Well guess what, princess, I’ve been doing just fine without you! Even better now that I don’t have to be in your fucking shadow…”  
  
Adora blinked away the tears threatening to show in her eyes, “Catra… that’s not what I meant-”  
  
“Could've fooled me…” her teeth sunk into her lips, biting back whatever it was she was going to say. It wasn’t worth the wasted breath, “Whatever…” she stated as she leapt off the bar stool and made her way towards the exit.  
  
“Catra, wait!”  
  
“Bye, Adora.” And the wall was back up again, an air surrounding her that she was no longer willing to be bothered. That she was done dealing with the emotional strain it brought and the strain to keep it all hidden.  
  
Adora couldn’t do anything but watch as Catra strode over towards the exit. Well, she could have gone after her but that would just make things worse. So, what she did instead, the only thing she could think to do, was let her head fall to the bar countertop, her forehead pressing against the cool, wooden surface.  
  
“What happened??” Glimmer’s voice called from behind Adora’s back, “It looked like it was going well.”  
  
“What do you think? I put my own foot in my mouth.” Adora grumbled as she pressed her skull further into the furniture.  
  
“I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.” Bow tried reassuring her, pressing the palm of his hand against her back and rubbing small, comforting circles.  
  
“I pretty much insinuated that she had no future. You don’t get much worse than that!” Adora snapped, her head shooting up to show the glistening wetness of her eyes before slamming her head back onto the table.  
  
“Ouch…” Glimmer muttered while Bow’s face cringed to mirror the comment.  
  
“Now there’s no doubt about it, she hates me.” she mumbled away.  
  
Bow and Glimmer looked between each other for a moment before looking back at their friend. “Well, I wouldn’t go as far as hate.” Glimmer spoke up as she leaned over Adora’s body.  
  
“And what makes you so sure?”  
  
“You’re pretty dry, aren’t you? If you said that to me, and I hated you for it, I would have chucked my drink into your face.” the pink haired girl stated with a bit of a laugh.  
  
Adora’s head looked up and she thought about it for a moment. Her eyes looked towards the abandoned glass with the condensation still dripping down the surface.  
She breathed out a short chuckle, “Yeah… knowing her, she would have climbed over the counter and dumped all the bottles over my head.” she stated, gaining a laugh from the other two as they imagined the scrappy young dancer dumping the clubs property in an act of vengeance.  
  
“Right, she might be angry but I wouldn’t say you lost your chance with her. There’ll definitely be a next time.” Bow smiled, instantly making the dimly light club feel ten times brighter.  
  
“Yeah…” Adora’s thumb rubbed away the tears that were building up in her eyes, “Thanks you two.”  
  
“Anytime, Adora.” Glimmer smiled as she wrapped her arms around Adora’s body the moment she saw Bow moving in to hug her first, successfully sandwiching the blonde between the two of them.  
  
Adora’s arms wrapped around the two’s shoulders, squeezing them tightly to remind herself of the good that came with deciding to accept Brightmoon’s offer. She breathed out a heavy breath, letting herself relax and ease the tension off her body.  
  
“You still wanna dance?” Glimmer asked as she pulled away slightly.  
  
Adora looked away with a slight, embarrassed flush on her cheeks, “Actually… you mind if we head home…? It’s still kind of fresh, you know.”  
  
“No no, I get it.” her friend responded quickly, urging that she not feel guilty about going home so soon.  
  
“We can just chill tonight. Take it easy.” Bow added with an affirmative nod of his head.  
  
“Thanks.” Adora muttered softly with a gentle curve on her lips.  
  
The three friends made their way to the door, leaving the club behind for the comforts of their apartment. Adora couldn’t say for certain if she could call the night either good or bad as a mix of emotions circled around in her stomach. But she was certain, at least, that it was a night she wasn’t going to be forgetting anytime soon. And, with Catra’s thrusting hips and sweat glistened stomach still fresh in her mind, heavens she’d definitely wouldn’t be forgetting tonight.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gay panic on top of a creative block does not make for a productive Adora

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your comments and kudos. It's been a while since my writing had gotten such a positive reception so believe me when I say I am over the moon with excitement and gratitude. So, seriously, a huge thank you for the support.
> 
> Also, sorry for any confusion regarding whether or not this work was complete. I feel as blink as a bat because, when I first posted, I couldn't find that darn multiple chapters box. Only managed to find it just the other day so now it should be showing properly that more chapters are coming.

The next day came without any further incidents, so that meant that it was back to business as usual. Or it should have been, but Adora found that her brain still didn’t want to cooperate. She had thought if she had sat at her work desk, pull open her notebook and write whatever came to mind would her get somewhere, anywhere. But all she could show for her morning of brainstorming was a blank page, mocking her with its clean, white, untouched lines and spaces.

She let out a frustrated groan as her head fell to the desk face first. This was getting bad. At this rate, the idea of having anything to submit was becoming ludicrously impossible. Her forehead grounded itself further into the edge of the desk, eyes closed in contemplation. She was trying to visualize it, to see herself succeeding with an amazing routine. But all she could see behind her closed lids was the vision of Catra dancing in the encompassing crowd. 

Hips shaking sinfully, rolling and gyrating like she had never seen before. Actually, Adora couldn’t say that it was the first time she saw Catra dancing like that. On occasion, when the two were messing around with the more modern music tracks, she’d dance the way she’d seen in rap videos. It was a play on seductive and provocative and it was sloppy to say the least, but she had fun with it. And she had even more fun when she pulled Adora along. She could swear Catra’s fit of laughter from Adora’s flustered and stiff movements still rung in her head fresh as the day she first heard them. 

They weren’t kids anymore. She wasn’t a kid anymore. She had breasts now, a slim waist whose curve called the eye to trace it down to her hips. Perhaps that was what fixated Adora’s memories on her dance from last night. The fact that she hadn’t seen Catra in years, that the Catra she saw was a woman, and that woman knew how to move every inch of her feminine features to get Adora thoroughly bothered.

“Since when did she learn to dance like that…” Adora muttered to herself as she pushed her palms into her face, sending her head back up into a straighten position.  
Her eyes peered through the gaps of her fingers, staring up at the ceiling trying to overwrite the permeating mental image. But she could still see those blue and golden irises in the white of the wall, daring anyone with a strong enough will to watch her till the very end.

Adora stood to her feet sharply, her chair wheeling out behind her from the force. The mental block wasn’t getting any better. It was getting so much worse. Before it was just a blank space in her head, but now that blank space was being filled by her ex-best friend in ways she never thought she could see her before last night. Irritatingly incessant images overflowed her brain and drowned out any other thought. She had to fix this, sooner rather than later if she could, and she had an inkling of an idea as to how. 

***

That was how Adora found herself back at the front entrance of the Black Garnet, its doors closed until 5pm, it was currently 3. It was an inkling, after all, figuring if she didn’t find her at the club then she could at least spot her around the neighborhood. Unfortunately, neither option panned out in her favor. 

She let out a defeated sigh as she pulled out her phone. There was always coming back when the doors were open, but then that left the remaining time to be killed elsewhere. It wasn’t like she brought any kind of “time killing” tools with her, which, in retrospect, she should have thought of. Of course, making beelines to doorways never left enough time to think or go through any sort of mental checklist. 

Her fingers flicked over and played with her phone, trying to find something to occupy her time without having to travel too far. However, the attention given to her phone screen was interrupted by the rattling going on at the door. She stared with a perplexed look on her face before jolting away from the swinging door.

“Adora?? That is you, isn’t it?!” the excited voice came sooner to her ears than the visual came to her eyes.

A large woman with short, white hair held the once locked door wide open, a friendly and genuinely inviting smile spreading across her face and into her entire being. It took Adora a second to realize where she had seen that happy grin before and it hit her like a cinder block. 

“Ms. Scorpia?!” Adora’s finger couldn’t help but point towards the acquaintance. There were a lot of things to be unexpected, needless to say, seeing an old high school teacher coming out of a closed dance club was one of them.

“Well, it’s just Scorpia now, but…” Her arms went in, wrapping around Adora’s body and easily lifting her feet off the ground as she crushed her in one of her infamous bear hugs. “It’s so good to see you. After I heard you were going to attend BMA, I thought that was it. But here you are again.”

Adora could hardly get a word out, or a breath for that matter, as she made her feeble attempt to return the gesture with a pat on her broad back.

“Trust me… the feeling is mutual…” she managed to squeeze out before her eventual release. She took a breath, refilling her crushed rib cage with air before letting a smile come to her lips, her gaze falling on the woman. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here. Do you work part time at the club?” she asked, peering into the empty room behind her.

“Not exactly. It’s my club so its more full time than part time and more managing than working.” Her tone didn’t miss a beat, so casual and nonchalant Adora nearly missed it.

“Huh? Whose club is it again?”

“Mine, I’m the owner.” Scorpia pointed to herself in reference, the smile never faltering.

Adora’s mind needed another second to process her findings, eyes staring blankly as their functions were cut to increase brain productivity.

“Oh wow, you’ve really been in the dark this whole time.” the older woman noted with a wide eyed, surprised expression on her face. Her hand took hold of Adora’s wrist, firm but gentle in her invitation. “Why don’t we talk inside? There’s so much to catch up on!”

And catch her up she did, Adora spending a good chunk of time sitting at Scorpia’s bar table, sipping at a cup of coffee personally prepared by the owner herself. Well, it was the employee’s coffee from the break room but they wouldn’t miss a cup or two. The woman could go on for hours upon hours in her excited rambles, spilling out new information and, often times, repeated information. Her mind just couldn’t keep up with how much she had shared. 

She talked about her life’s situation, how she went from being a high school substitute teacher to the owner of a dance club. She claimed that she felt her purpose was to give the kids some form of safe haven where they didn’t have to worry so much or think too hard. Certainly, she was enjoying it more than teaching. The plethora of talent she had the privilege to witness every night, untapped and untouched potential, made the career change worthwhile.

Adora listened with intrigue, nodding her head and making attempts to verbally participate in their conversation, but found that Scorpia’s words were practically non-stop. It made her chuckle internally to herself just how bubbly this woman was and always had been. She only had the chance to meet and speak with her on the occasion that their usual teacher was unavailable, but her impression was unforgettable. Open and truly caring, a rarity in a school whose staff only ever sought perfection and results.

“Oh, and Catra! She’s become quite the regular. You know, I really think we’ve bonded over the last few years.”

Adora’s eyes perked up. Right, that’s what she was here to do before her train of thought was completely derailed for Scorpia’s own set of tracks.

“You still talk to her.” Adora had to forcibly interject herself before Scorpia could continue on without her.

“Oh yeah, of course.” she answered, speaking in a matter of fact tone before taking notice of the somber look crossing Adora’s face. “Oh… right, sorry. Bit of a sensitive subject for you, isn’t it? Have you heard from her since?”

Adora began to shake her head before thinking better of it, “I haven’t but… last night, I…” The image of Catra’s dancing form flashed in her mind briefly before being shoved away just as quickly, however, its effect was already showing in the flushed color of her cheeks. “I ran into her here last night, and we talked for a bit. It was going well until… till I screwed it up.” a sigh fell from her lips, “I was hoping to find her here, clear a few things up, but…”

Scorpia stared at her silently, listening without interruption before responding, “You do realize clubs don’t usually open until evening, right?” 

“Yeah, kind of didn’t think that one all the way through.” Adora admitted, avoiding the woman’s gaze as she sipped away at the mug.

The owner crossed her arms, a concentrated, ponderous look on her face. She was contemplating something, playing around with an idea in her head, and it got Adora curious from the sudden bout of silence from her old teacher.

“I could tell you where you’d have a better chance of finding her… But I’m wondering if that’s such a good idea…” she thought aloud before her eyes met with Adora’s.

Without meaning to, without thinking to, Adora’s body lunged forward, hopeful excitement beaming on her face as she drew closer to Scorpia, who, giving her credit, did not draw away from the intense gaze.

“Please tell me!” the blonde pleaded. It took her a moment to realize she might have sounded a bit too desperate, clearing her throat and sitting back down when she did. “I mean, would you mind telling me where she is?” she rephrased, her body had calmed down but her eyes still held that same sense of determined intensity.

Scorpia met the gaze in kind, knowing that Adora meant well but also doubting if it would be a good idea for Catra. After all, the two of them didn’t have anywhere near as close of a bond as the woman had with Catra. 

Adora was sure that when Catra saw fit to dissolve their friendship, it was Scorpia who stepped in as her support. When Adora had left for Brightmoon, it was Scorpia who made sure to check in with her once best friend when she couldn’t, offering a attentive ear and a shoulder to lean on. She was certain of it, the ivory haired substitute had taken a liking to Catra from day one. Despite Catra’s prickly personality towards the teachers, Adora was sure she managed to worm her way past her defenses and settled comfortably as someone the teen could rely on. Why else had the two kept in contact even after high school? 

She had a right to be suspicious, to feel justified to withhold Catra’s whereabouts if Adora wasn’t ever told directly. However, if she didn’t tell her, there wasn’t anything stopping Adora from returning every night for the chance to run into her again. And, if that didn’t work out, there was always searching the city and scouring the internet for any clues as to her activities and where she liked to be. Adora wasn’t an investigator, but she’d pick up the hobby if to make things right… and fix what was going on in her head.

The two kept on with their staring contest for a while longer before Scorpia finally relented, “You promise you won’t hurt her?” she asked, her voice low. A warning that if anything were to happen that she would deal with it personally, as much of a gentle giant as she was.

“I swear on my life, I just want to reconcile with her.” Adora responded, a nod of her head in understanding what was left unsaid.

Scorpia’s eyes searched Adora’s, looking for any glimmer of doubt or bad faith. Her usual bright smile only returned to her lips once she was satisfied. “Alright then, take out your phone.” 

“My phone? Why?” she asked, although retrieving her phone from her back pocket nonetheless.

“Well, I’m not going to give you her number. That’s just rude. But I will give you mine.” she explained as she pulled out her own phone.

Adora navigated to her contacts screen quickly, looking to Scorpia once she was ready to dial her digits. 

“Alright, it’s (***)945-3228. Send me a message when you have it saved.” 

Adora did just that, inputting the numbers and sending a quick introductory message to let Scorpia know it was her number.

“And… got it!” she nodded her head firmly as her phone made a quick dinging notification sound. “Just so you know,” she started as she began typing away on her phone, “I’ll be checking up on you to make sure you’re really just trying to reconcile and not trying to mess with her head. Oh, and don’t bother lying because I’ll know.” she smiled as her finger tapped on her screen with finality.

Adora was taken back by Scorpia’s attitude, willing to help but also prepared to enact any protective means. She wasn’t certain if those means included any forms of physical harm. She’d like to believe the woman to be a pacifist against violence, but Adora did swear her life on her promise and, judging by the undertone of her words, Scorpia seemed inclined to take those words literally. 

There was a slight tinge of happiness at the idea of this protective hostility. The idea that Catra had someone in her life happy to go through any hoops to keep her content, it was relieving to know that her friend wasn’t necessarily alone during these past three years. But, it was a mixed feeling, a bittersweet feeling to know that it wasn’t Adora herself taking on that role. That Adora had to relinquish it after years of inseparable friendship made her stomach turn slightly.

The soured smile that had began to curl on her lips vanished as her phone vibrated with a new message. She looked down and opened the full text, seeing Scorpia’s bubbly introduction and, underneath, an address. 

Adora didn’t have a chance to inquire about it before Scorpia clarified for her, “You might be able to catch her there. It’s one of her favorite hang out spots during the day so you might have better chance finding her.”

She tapped on the displayed address, opening it in her navigation app to find that it was a local arcade, one that wasn’t a daunting walk from her current location by the looks of it. If she left now, perhaps she could run into her. And, if not, there was always plan B or plan C. But, for now, Adora settled to follow plan A as she stood from her seat, eyes glued to her phone screen.

“Thanks, Scorpia! I owe you big time!” she called as she made her way to the door.

“Don’t worry about it! If it all works out then that’s more than enough payback.” Scorpia waved a hand towards the exiting blonde, the friendly grin remaining on her face as she left. Her smile faltered briefly as the door shut securely behind her, looking down at her phone and flipping through her photos of Catra. “I’m doing the right thing by you, right, Wild Cat?”

***

It didn’t take long for Adora to reach the address pulled up on her phone. And, with her walking briskly through the streets, afraid that if Catra was there then she’d miss her by moving too slow, it didn’t take her long at all. Her eyes shifted from her phone to the building, checking that the provided picture of the establishment matched what she was looking at, before stepping in through the doors.

The game room was dimly lit, making it difficult to find anyone in the dark space illuminated by the black-light lighting. Her eyes squinted as she walked though the crowd. Children, either here since earlier playing hooky or here rightfully after school had let out, littered the spaces between the game cabinets. Watching them run around, rushing to their next preferred game without care for any solid bodies they may brush past brought back memories of her own childhood. Carefree memories before she ever really cared about what she was doing with her life. Memories she shared with Catra. 

Of course, it always did circle back to Catra. Just how woven together were their lives up until senior year? Adora barely noticed how prevalent she was until then. It all just seemed natural. Her company always felt right that it only seemed fitting that they did everything together, explored places untouched and try things they never experienced. 

Adora remembered when they were kids themselves, how Catra managed to talk Adora into skipping their after school practice session. Mrs. Weaver was really upset with Catra then, more so than she had ever seen her before, but Catra insisted that it was worth it to get Adora to loosen up. They went to the arcade, ran around and enjoyed themselves thoroughly like these kids were doing. She ate a slice of cheap pizza that she remembered tasting amazing back then. And they discovered the marvelous game that would become their favorite: Dance Dance Revolution.

Adora had heard of the game before but that day was the first time she saw how impressive it could be, how fun it was to challenge herself to get faster and play even harder songs. She and Catra just happened to watch a pair of players, expert players, finish off their final stage during their turn and could hardly believe their eyes. How fast the music played in the speakers, how quickly the arrows flew across the screen and how agile the players’ feet had moved to keep up. One look into Catra’s glittering gaze told Adora that she was thinking the same thing as her: they wanted to be able to play just as well, even better, than those two nameless players that didn’t even know they existed.

Dwelling on the memories of her and Catra running off to the arcade whenever they could, spending any amount of money they could get their hands on for game tokens, and climbing up their difficulty stages together brought her body to the sound of the dance machine being played towards the back. Adora considered that she was merely feeling nostalgic for the game, being drown towards its melodies and the symphony of stomping feet. She considered it, until she saw a familiar silhouette blocking the screen, complete with a recognizable wild mane that bounced and swayed with her rapid movements across the dance pads. 

She really was here. Adora had managed to find Catra. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here's how I work, I plan out and daydream about the story in its entirety... I do not think about where to cut off a chapter and just go by gut instincts. So I was debating whether to cut off the chapter here or continue on but decided that it was a good stop point after everything that went on. 
> 
> Next chapter is going to have some more present day Adora and Catra interaction and DDR play so that's going to be a blast writing!
> 
> Oh, and one last thing, my upmost respect and amazement to anyone who sees what's hidden in Scorpia's number.
> 
> Feel free to leave your thoughts, they truly do make my day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DDR Dance Battle Feat. Adora vs Catra!

Catra certainly didn’t lose her touch since the last time Adora and her had the chance to play together. Dancing across the dual dance pads in her Double play mode, she was in top form flawlessly hitting the panels and landing her perfects marvelously. The announcer was going crazy with praises as her combo just continued to rise higher and higher. It was like Adora was a kid again, watching an impressive display with her star struck, unfaltering gaze.

Adora couldn’t be certain how long Catra had been playing by herself like this, but, by the way her tank top clung to her sweat coated skin, it was safe enough to assume she had been going for a while. Had other players want their turn at the game? Probably, but Catra wasn’t one to relinquish control unless it was for her own benefit. That and the fact that Catra was an intimidating person once she got going, so it was unlikely that anyone would have been able to stop her even if they wanted to try.

Knowing this, Adora stood by the sidelines, listening to the track reach its conclusion but not letting up in its final stretch. With a stomp edged in epic finality, the song finished and her score was posted up on the screen. Of course her score was maxed, full combos tend to do that, but Catra seemed uninterested, her hand merely reaching for the water bottle perched atop the game cabinet’s speakers. She gulped down the contents while her chest rose and fell, willing her breathing to remain steady and consistent.

Just as the water break served to calm Catra’s racing heart, it also allowed Adora’s mind to break away from her unending stare, calling back to why she came to this arcade in the first place. She let out a slow breath, expelling her nerves and inhaling an air of confidence. Although the brand was closer to a feigned version, she’d worry about that later.

“Hey Catra.” she spoke up loud enough to be heard over the bustle, internally praising herself for achieving such a feat.

Catra’s eyes widened as the drink spurted from her mouth and around the bottle’s top, making it splash right back onto her face. A hand covered her wet lips and dripping chin as she turned to look towards the last blonde she would ever expect to see in her space. What other blondes she could have expected was beyond her, but, the point of the matter was, Adora wasn’t supposed to be here, not in her established hangout spot.

“What are you doing here?” her mismatched eyes narrowed into a glare as she wiped her mouth with the back of her wrist.

Adora shrugged slightly, “It’s a free country, isn’t it?”

“Right,” Catra drawled as her eyes rolled into the back of her skull, “So you just happen to decide to come here, an arcade way too far out of the way of your prissy little school, to do what? Get away from it all?”

“Maybe. You don’t know everything that’s going on with me. Who’s to say I don’t need a get away?” Adora answered, her body rounding to the opposite end of the game cabinet, leaning against the speaker.

Catra eyed her for a moment, following her every step as she approached the machine. Obviously she wasn’t buying the excuse but she also wasn’t rested enough to put up a fight.

“Whatever,” she simply noted with a shrug of her shoulders as she placed the water bottle down and whipped out a token from her back pocket for the next game.

Before her fingers could slip it into the machine, however, Adora interrupted her motion, “You’re just going to keep playing?”

A brow rose on Catra’s face, “Uh, yeah…? Why, did you want to play too or something?”

Adora thought for a moment. If anything, this could be her chance get back onto Catra’s good side, or, at least, get Catra into a better mood to talk to her. She hadn’t had the chance to play DDR in months, not since her last break, but that could possibly serve to her advantage. Catra did love to win.

“Sure, you mind spotting me this time?”

“Pfft! Dream on, princess.” Catra’s head turned away back to the insert slot.

“Aw, what’s the matter? Afraid my rusty butt could still whoop yours?” she asked with a slight smirk, smug and obviously baiting.

And Catra knew this. She knew she was just trying to get her way by pushing the girl’s buttons. But the worst part was that it was working.

Catra let out a long frustrated groan as she reached to dig out the remaining token in her pocket so they could play two player. “Fuck. You.” she spoke between each token roughly pushed into the slot, “Don’t start whining when you realized you bit off more than you can chew!”

Adora was chuckling to herself as she mounted the second dance pad, part of her couldn’t believe that worked but giddy that it did. “Don’t worry, I’m well aware of what I’m getting myself into.”

Catra’s eyes rolled again, her head shaking while her fingers pressed the buttons at the machine to pull up the Battle Mode feature. The song list came onto the screen, the voice prompting for a selection. Catra wasted no time, flicking past the songs and their samples to rush to a particular track. It was one they were both familiar with and one Adora knew that her months of game play hiatus was going to bite her in the butt. But she didn’t complain. She simply followed the noirette’s lead down to the “Expert” difficulty setting. Luckily for her, Catra didn’t elect to put in any additional options.

“A handicap? How merciful of you.” Adora commented as the time window for pulling up the options screen passed.

“I’m just proving a point here.” Catra answered, hands gripping the back bar to keep her positioning in check.

Her blue eyes flashed towards Catra for a split second before steeling herself for the challenge ahead.

The stage went as well as Adora could have expected. She lost, of course, but at least she passed… technically speaking.

Catra was laughing hysterically, her body doubled over on the center panel, “The hell was that?! I knew you’d be rusty but damn! What did that school do to you??”

“Shut up!” Adora nudged her shoulder in a playful manner, nearly pushing her over, “That was just a warm-up. Next round is the real thing.”

“Sure hope so, I was starting to look forward to that butt whooping of yours.” Catra smirked as she rose back up to her feet, leaning back against the bar.

Obviously, she was just saying that to get under her skin. Obviously, this was payback for taking her last token. But if Adora’s face was trying to prove that she was aware of it, it was doing a horrible job. Her fingers stammered, looking back at Catra with an attempt at a comeback. Keyword: attempt, a wordless stutter was never anyone's definition of a solid burn.

She saw Catra point a finger at the game screen, “Clock’s ticking. Better choose something fast.”

Adora turned back to the screen quickly, flipping through the tracks to something she could remotely handle. Sure, she was ready to lose but she never committed to going down without a fight.

Next stage Adora did better, way better. She was able to give Catra a run for her money, leaving her half of the screen as much of a jumbled mess as she left hers.

“Damn… guess you weren’t kidding about that warm-up.”

It gave Adora a bit of an ego boost, showing off to Catra that Brightmoon hadn’t completely sapped away any talent she had left for this game.

“It’s just been a while, but now I’m feeling the rhythm again.” she stated with a bit of a bounce to her step.

An impish smirk found its way to Catra’s lips as she walked closer to the screen, “Oh have you now?” The way she said that was definitely a bad sign, “So you wouldn’t mind playing this.” She scrolled down the list until she reached what she was looking for, letting the sample play out as she turned her devilish looks to watch Adora’s face.

Adora bit her bottom lip, instantly recognizing the song. An old bitter acquaintance, one she was never able to fully get down and always managed to stumble through. Catra couldn’t have known if she conquered her old childhood fear, but did she care? Absolutely not! Her finger pressing down on the select with glee.

“You’re evil…” Adora spat out with narrowed eyes as Catra paraded back to the dance pad beside her.

Catra gasped, “And here I thought you knew me.” she said, proud and smug about her song selection.

It all ended as both of them predicted: Catra proclaimed the victor and Adora left breathless. Her hands pressed against her knees, Adora tried to regain some semblance of how the world was supposed to move beneath her feet. The months spent off the game did not make that song any easier. She was just lucky that she managed not to trip over her own feet in trying to keep up. Small victories…

The water bottle extended towards her face offered by a olive toned hand. Her eyes looked towards the bottle before following the arm up to a pair of blue and golden eyes watching her like she was about to die.

“Here, there’s still a bit left.”

Adora’s pants spanned between the two for a moment longer before her hand reached for the drink, downing the last few gulps quickly.

“Thanks…” she gave the bottle back, already feeling better in more than one way.

“Don’t mention it. It’s the least I could do after demolition your ass in public.” she breathed out a smirk as she took the bottle back, proceeding to put it away into a small backpack settled with the rest of her belongings.

Adora watched as she knelt down, unzipping the back pocket and shoving the bottle inside, “Yeah, well, don’t think I won’t be wanting a rematch.” Her words sounded dangerously uncertain, even to her own ears, her hands shoving into her pockets to keep them from fiddling with each other.

Catra’s body stiffened for a moment, face turning ever so slightly to catch the blonde her in peripheral before turning back to her bag.

“Yeah…” she muttered softly but made no motion to make a next time possible.

She wanted to leave it up to chance, like how they met up last night and today, but Adora wasn’t satisfied with that. She wasn’t up for letting chance string her along, hoping the whims of fate would allow her to see her friend while helplessly brooding in the spaces in between.

She had been assertive enough to go back to that club. She felt brave enough to come to an arcade she never visited before. Certainly, she wasn’t going to chicken out now.

“So, what now?” Adora asked as she watched Catra shift the backpack over her shoulder.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m all out of tokens and all out of cash. So I think I’m just going to call it a night and head home.”

“Wait, so, you didn’t have any other plans after this?” she asked quickly.

Catra’s shoulders shrugged, “Not really. I just felt like playing today. But now I’m done, so…”

Adora sighed internally. Now she was really thankful that she ran into Scorpia earlier. The woman didn’t know it, but she managed to save Adora’s evening.

“Why are you asking?” Adora was pulled back into the conversation, leaving Catra staring at her with a skeptical raise of her brow.

“Oh, well, I mean, if you’re not doing anything, maybe I could, you know, treat you to dinner or something.” she suggested the idea, having to force it out past her stammers.

“What? Like a date?” her gaze was growing more and more wary by the second.

“What?! N-No! Not a date! Definitely not a date!” Adora corrected vehemently, perhaps too much so as her adamant denial was proving to have the opposite effect. “I mean, we used to treat the winner back when we were kids, so-”

“But we’re not kids anymore.” she cut off the excuse with practiced swiftness, waiting for Adora to try again.

“Right, but, you see…” the stammers were coming back in full force. She stopped for a moment and took a deep breath, letting go of any front she was futilely pretending would work and looking into Catra’s eyes. “Look, I just… I want a chance to talk with you, make up for last night. So… could you throw me a bone here?” she asked, her eyes pleading for salvation.

Catra groaned slightly, unable to handle a begging Adora, unable to look into her genuine baby blues working her best puppy eyes. Even more deteriorating was that she knew Adora wasn’t playing up the sappy expression for kicks. It was seriously just a face she made, just as natural as her smile or frown.

She reached into the front pocket of her bag and pulled out a sharpie pen, her other hand beckoning for Adora’s hand. Wordlessly, she rested her palm against Catra’s just like a dog. Catra let the connection go without incident, flipping the hand given to her and scribbling down on the palm. When she moved her head away, Adora could finally see a name written down. Correction, upon further inspection, it was a username.

Adora’s eyes lit up slightly as they raised from her palm to Catra expectantly.

“It’s my messenger handle. I’m going to go home and shower first so just message me where you want to go.” her finger pointed to the hand she just wrote on before turning to leave.

“Catra, I-”

“Ah-ah!” a hand rose, stopping the blonde’s words in their track, “Save it for later. I’ve been stewing in my own sweat for too long to care…” With that, she began her march to the exit, hurrying home for a much needed wash down.

Adora wordlessly watched the woman walk away from her. This was the second time she had to watch her go but it definitely felt better than the first. And not just because those leggings she was wearing worked for her. Adora had to mentally slap herself for that one, but, overall, she was feeling too high on euphoria to care about the brief, lewd thought. She had a meet-up set with Catra for later tonight. A meet-up that was totally not a date but such semantics were beyond trivial. Catra was giving her a second chance. Maybe Catra wanted this too.

Adora was playing too close to the edge of believing in an off-handed possibility, but she couldn’t stop herself even if she tried. The possible hurt and disappointment was future Adora’s problem. Present Adora’s problem was figuring out where the two were going to eat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a shorter chapter this time around but I had a blast writing it. DDR is a personal hobby of mine but it's been a while since I played the arcade version so I had to look up a few things and left the songs up to the imagination. I'm hoping it didn't take away from your experience but I'm also hoping the banter between Catra and Adora makes up for it.
> 
> Let me know how you felt about it. Catra and Adora's totally not a date but totally is a date is coming up next.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for the delay, real life has been keeping me busy. But, I finally got a break and so I bring you the "date" chapter!

“Where have you been?”

Adora, retreating back home for a refreshing shower herself, was greeted by the sudden question from the pink haired lass sitting on the living room sofa. Seated beside their third roommate, Glimmer had paused the game they were playing to interrogate the blonde; whom they had expected to be staying home to work on her project. Or, at least, that’s what she had told them. So, when she was no where to be found in the apartment when seeking a third in their Smash session, her sudden disappearance surprised her.

“Oh, um, just out.” Adora had answered though she wasn’t quite sure why it was so roundabout. But the flustered feeling in her cheeks and the pounding in her chest was a good clue to why she felt the need to beat around the bush.

“Oo! Did you finally reach a breakthrough?” Bow asked in his usual chipper tone, hands excitedly clasping together.

Adora’s hair, still damp and tasseled, would suggest as such, which only got her feeling more awkward that it wasn’t the case at all.

“No… no, still stuck on that.” Her hand pushed the loose strands back behind her ear and out of her face. 

That got the two of them even more confused, staring at Adora silently, expecting some kind of answer. It wasn’t prying if they practically shared everything anyway. Adora breathed out softly, taking the moment to find the right words that accurately described her situation.

“Okay, so, I wasn’t getting anywhere so I went out. And, when I went out, I ran into…” she took another breath, “Catra.”

Glimmer’s eyes suddenly shifted from curiosity to sympathy, “Oh, Adora… did you blow it again?” she asked, now thinking the wetness of her hair and clothes was something other than sweat.

“What? No!” the blonde cried out defensively.

“Yeah, Glimmer. Give her some credit, she’s not that socially inept to blow it twice in a row.” Bow came to her aid, nudging Glimmer slightly before looking to Adora, “But how did it go really.”

“Well first off, I didn’t blow it. We hung out for a bit, talked a little and,” a proud look came onto her face, “We’re having dinner later.”

The two on the sofa didn’t have to look at the other’s face to perfectly mimic their surprised expressions. Both with mouths agape and eyes ajar, their synchronicity would be frightening if Adora didn't know the two had been friends since they were in diapers.

“That’s… amazing Adora.” Glimmer was the first to speak out, her mouth slowly forming a smile with the shock still eminent.

“I’ll say. Going from blowing it to scoring a date is really something else. But that’s our Adora for you.” Bow grinned.

That smacked the smug smirk right off Adora’s face as the victorious look melted away and was rearranged to the theme of flustered embarrassment.

“Wha- I never said it was a date!” she stated. This was the second time she was accused to asking Catra out, and the first was from Catra herself!

“Well, what would you call it then?” Glimmer asked with a raised brow and a knowing smirk.

“We’re just getting together to eat. That’s it!”

“Are you both paying?” 

“No… I told her I’d treat her to dinner.”

“You.” Glimmer pointed to Adora, “Told her.” the hand gestured to a blank space beside her, “That’d you’d ‘treat her to dinner.’”

“Basically…”

“And you were the one totally excited that she said yes?” Bow asked.

“I guess…?” Adora had to think about that one, recalling how Catra gave Adora her contact info. Sure, she wasn’t as over the moon but Catra wasn’t one to do anything she didn’t want to.

The two couch buddies looked to one another, wordlessly communicating something before turning back to look at Adora, “A date.” they both declared simultaneously.

“It’s not a date!!” Adora shouted, her hands clenching at her hair, “You can treat your friends to a meal! It isn’t a date exclusive- You know what? I don’t have time for this!” she began to storm over towards the bathroom.

“Adora wait.” Glimmer placed down her controller, rushing over to Adora’s side before she could get inside, “We’re just teasing. Honestly, we’re happy for you.”

“Seriously.” Bow added, having followed right behind, “We know how much this means to you and we hope everything goes smoothly.”

Adora looked between the two before letting out a sigh as a small smile formed on her lips, “Thanks, you guys... Hopefully everything works out.”

"Of course it'll work out, you're you. If you made it this far, then I'm sure you can make it all the way." Glimmer's hands pressed against Adora's shoulder, her eyes overflowing with an encouraging and reassuring expression.

Adora's hand cupped over Glimmer's, nodding ever so slightly. She couldn't honestly say she believed her herself, but it felt good to hear that someone else was so certain about it. Now, if she could just sap some of that certainty for herself tonight, she'd be all set.

That would have been the part where the three would go in for a group hug, but Adora felt she’d rather keep her sweat stains to herself. And Bow and Glimmer were happy to share the sentiment. So, alone, Adora went into the bathroom, using the time it took to get ready to come up with her battle plan.

***

After plenty of belly-aching and enough mental circling to make her physically dizzy, Adora had decided to keep things simple and casual. They would be eating at a casual family restaurant; she figured it was a safe enough bet for Catra’s tastes. She was dressed in casual but nice looking clothes, the wardrobe trying to mask the fact that she had been staring at it along with three other choices. And, settling to just meet at the restaurant, she’d keep the whole evening relaxed and _casual_. There was no need to fret, no need to worry. Just dinner with an old friend.

That’s all this was. Dinner, not a date, just dinner. And Adora’s mind was set to remind her what she already knew through the repetitious mantra playing over and over in her head. Honestly speaking, it wasn’t doing her any good. She still couldn’t get it out of her head how Bow and Glimmer insisted that the evening’s event was a date. But that was crazy! There was no possible way this could be anything but a get together with an old friend, a chance to chat and redo their initial impromptu reunion.

Her heart was starting to beat like crazy and she was convinced that it was just her nerves worried that she’d say the wrong thing or do something offensive. But it totally wasn’t because of any perceived courtship activities. No, of course not, because it was just dinner with a friend.

“Hey Adora.” 

Catra’s voice rang clear through the sea of crashing waves of thought, parting through the calamity like she was Moses presenting a cleared path to salvation. And, on the other side of that sea was just her, unobstructed in her red form-fitting band shirt with the sharp white print across the front and her pair of black skinny jeans whose rips presented windows to the smooth skin just underneath. And, just for a second, Adora’s mind faltered: it wouldn’t be so bad if this was a date after all.

“Catra… you made it.” the blonde managed the best she could past the mental block staring her right in the face.

“Um, yeah. I already said that I would.” 

Adora slapped herself mentally, “Right! Right,” she cleared her throat, reminding herself to keep it casual and play it cool, “Why don’t we head inside first.?” 

The subtle hints of a smirk came onto Catra’s lips as she gave a small shrug of her shoulders, “Sure.” she answered as she began to walk past the blonde, a hand reaching for the door to the restaurant. However, before she moved to open it, her eyes glanced back towards the other woman, “Oh, and Adora?”

“Yes?”

“Try loosening up some. I’ll go easier on you, so relax.” she gave a brief chuckle before heading inside first.

Adora stood there speechless for a moment. Was she really that easy to read? Or was it just because it was Catra? She really hoped it was the latter; she prayed for the latter as she followed Catra inside.

***

Things were going well so far. Sure, the two hadn’t said much of anything aside from putting in their order but that also meant that Adora hadn’t said anything she’d immediately regret and grimace over for the remainder of the century. But, as much as she would like to cling to the safety of mutual silence, it wasn’t getting her anywhere. Plus, there was a worse fate looming in their air: Catra’s boredom.

Adora had to get bold. Sure, she’d pick her words carefully but it was time to take risks.

She took in a quick breath, “So,” she drew in the woman’s attention just a she was sticking a fry in her mouth. Brilliant timing, Adora, “How’s it going at the Horde? You didn’t mention it at all last time, classes going okay?” 

Catra’s eyes blinked slowly, staring at Adora long enough to get the blonde squirming, questioning if she had screwed up already. She swallowed her food and reached over towards the milkshake glass dripping with cool condensation. The lips wrapping around the straw hid the small look of satisfaction she got from the effect her every little move had on the blonde sitting across from her.

Her fingers gripped at the straw’s neck, stirring the contents inside the glass to get a more constant consistency, “Oh, that’s cause I dropped out freshman year.” she finally answered in such a nonchalant tone that Adora had to double check she heard her right.

“Wait, you what??”

The noirette began to cackle, a hand shielding her mouth and keeping the laughter to their table.

Adora watched her for a moment before an uncertain smile came to her lips, “Oh, you were joking.” she assumed as she watched Catra laugh away by herself.

“Nope,” her chuckles began to die down, “I’m completely serious. You’ve just been so stiff that your jaw-drop was priceless.”

“But why, though? Did something happen?” Adora’s expression was far from the amused giddiness that Catra was displaying, instead full of concern and dreading the worse despite the person-in-question’s response.

Catra’s lips pursed together, a brief look of resentment crossing her eyes before turning her gaze down onto her plate. She had tried to hide it, hide the bitterness that still simmered faintly inside her, but she wasn’t quick enough. 

It had been three years since the initial hurt and the intense feeling of betrayal and abandonment. Three years since the worst of it. Three years of focusing on herself and her own happiness. Three years to get over the fact that her best friend had moved on to bigger and better things. It would be amazing how much had changed in those three short years if it wasn’t so depressing how some things remained the same.

“Catra…?” Adora’s voice was soft and scared, terrified of the idea that there just wasn’t any chance of mending things.

Catra felt the pang of guilt hit her chest at the tone, her desperation evident in every part of her being. And Catra just didn’t have it in her to let Adora carry on like that. After all, she was supposed to have gotten better after all this time. She was capable of being the bigger person, right? Especially when Adora, the same Adora who was by her side since day one, was trying so hard in her own right.

She let a sigh leave her lips, settling the complex cocktail of emotions growing in the pit of her stomach. “Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing you could have done to stop the inevitable. Yeah, you weren’t there, but that just made things even more clear.” A slight smile came to her freckled face, turning her mismatched gaze to meet the cloudy blue of Adora’s eyes. “See, I figured something out after you left: I really hate school. The boring lessons, the restrictive routines, the dull history nobody gives a shit about, it’s all pointless. You were the only part of it that kept me going.”

“Catra, I-”

“Wait,” a finger reached across the table to Adora’s lips, “I’m not finished yet.” Her hand lowered back to the table before her shoulder rose in a laid back shrug, “So, yeah. I went to the Horde School of Dance like we- I planned, and as the semester went on, I kept wondering what the point of it was. Long story short, there wasn't one, so I dropped out. Save my tuition money, y'know?”

Adora took a moment to process what she had heard, her eyes wandering just as her brain did to find the question she wanted to ask most out of the swarm of possibilities. 

“But… don’t you practically need a degree to get anywhere in the industry?” she asked, which elicited a chuckle out of Catra.

“You seriously need to stop buying into what they tell you at school. Some places prefer talent over a degree. And, luckily for me, I’m full of talent.” a smug smirk came onto Catra’s lips as she leaned over the table, her eyes glimmering with a silent dare; a challenge for Adora to state the contrary. 

Which, of course, Adora didn’t have the gull to do, not when she had first hand experience of Catra’s “talent.” She cleared her throat before the flustered color in her cheeks could spread any further across her face. “So what are you doing now?” 

Catra reached for another fry, they were starting to get cold but she chewed away on it like it was still fresh. She swallowed and answered, “Pole dancing.” 

“Catra!” the blonde gasped, sending the noirette into a rolling laughed that forced her head onto the table. “Okay, you’ve got to be pulling my leg this time, admit it!” she demanded, the joking mood finally infecting her.

“Okay, fine, that time I was fucking with you.” she admitted, wiping a tear from her eye as she rose her head back up.

Adora’s own giggles died down as she crossed her arms in front of her chest, acting like she wasn’t going to take anymore nonsense. Although, the mirthful look in her eyes said otherwise. “Are you going to tell me what you do then?”

Catra pondered the thought for a moment, rolling it around in her head before the craning settled as a mischievous smirk took hold of her lips, “Nah, but I’ll show you.” 

Adora wasn’t sure what that meant nor what the look in her eyes were implying. All she was sure of was that it was getting increasingly hot in the restaurant, and something told her the heat wasn’t going to die down any time soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you felt this was worth the wait, I know I was having some fun with writing Adora in denial. 
> 
> Next chapter's plan is to up the sexual tension but things are going to get even more hectic so there might be another wait on that one. Sorry about that, but thank you everyone who looks forward to these chapters. You guys really keep me going. 
> 
> Also, a special thanks to bow-woahh on tumblr for including Dirty Dancing in your catradora rec. list. It made me really happy to be included among so many other great fanfics.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra shows off what she does for a living and Adora reaches a revelation.

To be frankly honest, Adora wasn’t sure what she was expecting when she got into Catra’s car. Having absolutely no clue what she was getting herself into, she was left to stare idly and awkwardly out the passenger side window. Although, she did manage to remember to take note of the area they were driving through, wanting to maintain some sense of awareness of where she was and any semblance of sketchiness that may arise. Not that she doubted Catra’s own ability to take care of herself, but she was allowed some leeway to be a bit concerned over an old friend’s living situation.

“We’re here.” Catra’s voice suddenly cut through the silence and penetrated Adora’s mind like a headshot.

Feeling more alert about their surroundings, Adora looked around the empty parking lot as Catra drove in to park. The building itself was dark, obviously way past business hours. Despite how dead the area was, Catra got herself out of the car with a bit of an eager rush. She was just about to swing her door closed when she noticed the blonde still sitting in her seat with the belt still fastened like she intended to wait in the car.

“Um, you coming, princess?” she asked with a raised brow.

“Oh! Sure! Yeah, I’m coming.” Adora fumbled with the safety belt, clicking it free before stepping out of the car herself. 

She could get a better look at the building now standing in front of it, could see the signs and flyers better too. Scheduled dance classes, group gatherings, did one of them mention pole dancing classes too? Adora took a step back, looking up at the building again. No doubt about it, this was a dance studio. However, what really caught her attention was the rattling of keys as Catra began unlocking the doors. Her feline eyes caught Adora’s, smirking as she recognized the incredulous look reflected in those baby blues.

“Catra, do you-” she didn’t even know how to end that sentence, only silently pointing at the door.

The noirette just snickered as she swung the door open for her, “What? Is it that surprising that I’m just doing that well for myself?” she asked with a smug smirk painted across her lips.

“Well… I wouldn’t use the word ‘surprising.’” or maybe surprising was appropriate, “Just… how do I put it… I guess it’s more amazing than anything else.”

Catra looked back at her slightly, feeling a well of pride form in her chest as she nodded her head inside, “Told you school’s a waste of time.” 

“Now I wouldn’t go that far… but you’ve always been pretty proactive. So, in this case, I’ll give.” Adora stated with an enthused smiled as she stepped into the dance studio, taking in the interior as Catra threw the lights on. “So… is this whole place yours?”

“Mmm, not quite. I have a business partner so it’s more like half of it is.” she corrected with a bit of a shrug, turning to take in Adora’s expressional shifts.

“I mean… considering that you own any part of a business is still pretty good. Most people our age don’t even have that much.” Adora met Catra’s watchful gaze, noticing just how thoroughly those heterochromatic eyes were studying her, watching for her approval. 

She couldn’t meet that level of intense eye contact, forcing her gaze to find interest in a photography board with pictures of students of all ages, even little children. How nostalgic, she even taught little kids. Adora was honestly surprised Catra had the patience for it, but there was probably a bit more to it than merely spreading out her target clientele.

“Business partner!” Adora spoke up again, realizing she might have gone a bit too quiet there, “It’s surprising you’d tolerate one? Is it someone I know?”

“Depends… you remember Lonnie?”

Adora’s eyes widened, if she had been drinking anything, she’d be suffocating on it. But, instead, her body settled on simulating the sensation of all the wind in her body being knocked out of her lungs at once, the news hitting her like a kick to the gut.

“Lonnie?!” her wild-eyed expression finally turned back to Catra.

“Yep.” her response was so nonchalant and cool that it made Adora look like the crazy one.

“That Lonnie??”

“I only know the one.”

“I thought you hated her! Last time I checked, you two couldn’t stand each other!”

“And when was the last time you checked again?”

That one probably shouldn’t have felt as much like a slap to the face as it did for Adora but it left her speechless regardless.

“Sorry, sorry. Too soon.” Catra quickly apologized, running her fingers through her thick, dark locks, “Let’s just say we tolerate each other enough to put our shit aside. And… she ain’t that bad, I guess.”

Adora let out a breathy sigh, running her hand up into her hair as she looked away slightly. “I seriously missed so much in just three years… I even missed you growing out of your angsty teen phase…” she tried to lighten up her own mood with the jab, but it only pulled out a forced chuckle from her throat.

“It isn’t all your fault,” Catra stated with a slight shrug of her shoulders, laughing a bit at herself, “After all, I was in my angst phase.”

Adora looked over towards Catra slightly, still feeling bad for herself but the effort to cheer her up didn’t go unnoticed as a soft smile graced her lips. The two stared at one another for a moment, taking in and exchanging gentle gazes and comforting smiles before Catra let out an audible gasp.

“That’s right! I told you that I was going to show you what I do for a living.” Catra stated as she reached over to grab Adora’s hand, gripping it firmly as she led her into the back.

“Didn’t you already do that?” Adora asked. She could glean a pretty good idea of it from just this much, but she couldn’t say she was opposed to being lead around by the impulsive woman for a bit longer.

“Yeah, but I want to show off to you some more.” the noirette answered, a toothy grin covering her freckled face as she walked her into the dance hall. 

Her hand released Adora’s as they entered the large practice space. The shining, smooth hardwood floors brilliantly reflected the overhead fixtures, making the room appear brighter than the lights could manage by themselves. The mirrors lining the opposite wall allowed the blonde to indirectly watch the woman walk closer to a portable speaker mounted on a fold-away chair, seated in anticipated wait for its master’s return.

Adora already had a good idea of what was coming, was already bracing herself mentally for the upcoming visual stimulation. Even as Catra was going through her phone, probably picking out her musical accompaniment, she was willing her own heartbeat to slow just so she could properly pick out the song’s beat over her own internal sounds.

Catra’s eyes flickered upward towards the mirrors, spying her audience getting increasingly antsy waiting for her performance. She loved that feeling, loved the idea of others waiting desperately to watch her dance. Although coming from the old time friend and dance companion, the feeling held a special sense of satisfaction. A smirk crossed her lips as her thumb pressed the play button on her phone screen. 

She let the track play out its intro, the sound of the steady clapping filling the room as she got herself into position. She could feel the excitement building and flooding every inch of her limbs just as the song drew closer to her cue. 

As the lyrics started up, her arm snapped upward in a beckoning gesture, and at the next line, the second followed suit. Simple movements, likely meant more as a warm-up to loosen the limbs and fall into the beat. However, the way they rolled so fluidly felt more enticing than anything else. Her heterochromatic gaze then fell to Adora, the smirk telling that she knew the blonde would turn speechless at the next drop. A finger curled towards her, challenging her blue gaze to never leave Catra’s figure. And, at the turn of the beat, Adora was left just as helplessly gapping as Catra anticipated.

Her body jumped off the ground, knees bending inward to get as much of a stomp as she could with her light frame. As she landed, body lowered and grounded, her shoulders began to roll with her chest, drawing Adora’s eyes to just how formfitting that shirt was on Catra’s torso. And her eyes just couldn’t help but follow the natural line of the human body, falling to her hips that popped to the fast-paced lyrics, the flesh and muscles around the area, of course, moving in accordance with the quick movement. Just as that cocky gaze had predicted, Adora couldn’t bear the idea of looking away from Catra’s form.

Catra’s body continued to dance to the track. Such sharp and precise movements, some of which, Adora recognized from their years together, others seeming completely foreign but so Catra’s style. Adora was just as knowledgeable of the extent of the human body’s capabilities: of how far legs could spread in a split, how long the arms could suspend and support the entirety of the body’s weight, how the body’s movements could be isolated into single points. And yet, seeing it on Catra, it still left Adora marveling at the performance. She felt shivers—actual shivers—run down her spine watching every point of her being move in synchronistic harmony.

And then it hit her; like a freight train, it hit her so hard she could hardly believe it took her this long to figure it out. She could slap herself a hundred times for being so slow to come to such an obvious revelation. 

Before she knew it, Catra’s performance had come to an end, leaving the panting noirette striding closer to Adora’s speechless form. The blonde didn’t even notice that her jaw was dropped until a slender finger pushed it back into position.

“I’m going to have to charge you a cleaning fee if your drool leaves any more of a mess,” she warned, followed by a raspy chuckle.

Adora blinked back into consciousness, looking down at her shirt abruptly before looking down at the floor, only to find that she was clean. She raised a brow towards Catra who only responded with a louder cackle. She would have played the unimpressed victim a bit more, but that high pitched laugh was much too contagious and left Adora following with her own bubbling giggle.

“Better than the first time?” Catra asked, wiping a forming tear from her golden eye and recollecting herself.

“I guess, the view was better after all, so…” Adora shrugged with a bit of a smirk on her lips. To which, she found herself being playfully shoved by the shorter girl, the sudden shove sending her tottering back slightly and laughing at the effort. “But really, you seriously haven’t lost it at all. To be honest, it’s pretty inspiring.”

“Woah now, ‘inspiring’ might be a bit much, don’t you think? I mean, I’m good, but I’m not _that_ good, am I?” Catra raised up her hands, defending herself against the brutality such high praise could bring.

“Don’t sell yourself so short!” she exclaimed, her body stepping forward once. 

The other’s mixed-hued gaze searched her eyes, looking to see if she was pulling her leg on this. But those bright blue orbs, big and wide as they stared at her, held nothing but the seriousness that came behind the tone.

Adora blinked once before reeling herself back, “Sorry… But, I really meant it when I called you ‘inspiring’…” she went silent for another moment, eyes set downward in contemplation before drawing back up to Catra, the pair of baby blues now filled with hesitation and anxiety. “Catra… can I ask you something… or, more, ask something _of_ you?”  
Catra didn’t give a response, her eyes simply narrowing in confusion. She couldn’t understand or grasp what was coming over her childhood friend, what thoughts were ailing her to the point of shifting that easy-going atmosphere they were sharing just moments ago. She thought if she merely waited in silence, then Adora would get the hint. But she wouldn’t, her eyes silently begging for verbal permission.

“Well, c’mon. Out with it.” she gave the blonde a gentle shake, not as playful as her earlier shove but, instead, more comforting and reassuring.

Adora looked to the hand grasping her shoulder before breathing out slowly, gathering all her thought into one place. “Okay… so the reason why I was out at that dance club was that I was having a hard time with this final project I’ve got with my choreography course.” she started and looked towards Catra, watching as her head gave her the nod to go onward. “So my friends from BMA thought it’d be good for me to get out of our apartment for a bit. And that’s where I saw you.”

“I remember…” Catra’s brow rose, starting to wonder where Adora was going with all this.

“So, after we got back, I tried working on my project some more, but my mental block was worst than before. Like, way worst… because… all I could think about was you.” 

“Wh-What??”

How necessary was it to say that Catra was completely caught off guard by the confession? How the crimson hue filled her freckled cheeks and added a scarlet tone to her olive skin. And how her heart thudded loudly in her chest, wondering if she was mentally prepared for this. They had only just started to reconcile what they had. _She_ had only just begun salvaging every reason she had to adore and cherish their long-running friendship. Sure, Adora could be impulsive, but damn…

“I mean… out of sight, out of mind doesn’t really work when it comes to your dancing, and I just couldn’t get it out of my head. It made me want to see you badly—really, really badly. And, watching you again, I think I know now why I was feeling that way.” Adora’s hand reached for Catra’s, grasping them as she stared into her eyes. 

Catra’s eyes darted from Adora’s hands to her face, her brain having an increasingly difficult time keeping up with this information overhaul.

“Catra,”

She braced herself for it, braced for what was to come-

“Will you help me with my dance project?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took a really long time to come out. Spent more time than I would have liked with my own depression and self-loathing and all those "fun" little demons that keep us awake at night. Decided what I needed was a big change of pace so I'm moving from the north to the south and HOOO Boy ain't that going to be an adventure.
> 
> So, I'm sad to say that Dirty Dancing is going to be on a bit of a hiatus during this big move. I'm hoping next time I'm able to post the next chapter I'm in a better mental situation.
> 
> I thank you all for your comments and support towards this work, it seriously means so SO much to me that there are actual people who enjoy my writing.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra takes a moment to think over Adora's proposal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise, my lovelies!! Here is the real 6th chapter of Dirty Dancing. This chapter is the first to incorporate Catra's side of things so I hope you'll like it.

“Let me think about it for a bit.”

That was all Catra could muster after being completely flabbergasted by the blonde’s request, thinking that it could buy her some time to regain her senses after that curveball. It was enough to satisfy Adora at the time; she couldn’t really hide her disappointment at the time but, then again, she never was good at hiding anything from Catra.

She laid her back on the mattress, her dark hair sprawled over the pillow while her eyes stared up at the phone screen hanging just about her head. The messenger application was opened to hers and Adora’s chat, looking over the previous messages before scrolling down to the last one.

“I really had a lot of fun last night. It was great catching up and I hope we can do it again sometime.” A message from Adora to Catra, left on read two days ago.

She let out a long, low groan, pressing her hands into her face and letting her phone dig into her forehead. Why was this so difficult? Catra ought to be celebrating the fact that Adora was asking _her_ for help. _Her_! After she left Catra behind to attend some snotty, preppy dance academy. She should be rejoicing that she’s living the better life, not worried about classes, grades, or professors telling her how and how not to dance. She was better off without those limiters after what they’ve done to her best… _ex-_ best friend—still didn’t feel right to give that title back to her so soon.

So what was her issue? What was the big deal still holding her back like this?

The sigh that left Catra’s nostrils was heavy and filled with an unspeakable regret that she wasn’t quite ready to face. Her hand lifted the phone off her face, letting the brightness of the screen sting her eyes as she flipped through her opened applications, finding the Facebook app that was pulled up to Adora’s profile. Despite their back and forth messages, they still weren’t friends on social media, or they haven’t reestablished their friendship online, to be more precise. Adora was probably waiting for Catra to make the first move and Catra… Catra was still getting used to the possibility—the idea—of having Adora back in her life again.

It had hurt so much when she left the first time, her chest still ached just thinking about their last fight back then. What if it happened again? Or what if it doesn’t but it doesn’t feel the same as before? What if their relationship was too tainted to ever turn back?

She exhaled slowly, breathing through the old scar that threatened to open up again—fresh and renewed. She gave herself something else to think about, scrolling through the blonde’s pictures and posts. Her eyes scanned through the brief windows in time through Adora’s life, the life she lived without Catra by her side. She scrolled through the images of her new school back when the aw and excitement were fresh. She scrolled through the pictures of the bedroom she never shared a sleepless night of talking about nothing and everything with its occupant. And, she looked through the pictures of all her new friends, which had hit her the hardest.

There were so many pictures and tagged posts and videos of them dancing together. “Bow” was the worst offender of tagging Adora in every mundane piece of life. She figures that there was just enough here for a stalker to get plenty of information about the blonde’s daily life. Hell, Adora probably did have a few online stalkers feeding off of this constant stream of content. But the pink-haired girl left Catra feeling the most uneasy about this whole Adora living without Catra thing. It was like she slipped right into Catra’s spot next to Adora, pushing her to try new things, trying and experimenting with them together and building memories of the experience. She couldn’t help feeling a little bitter, resenting her uncontrollably and she hadn’t even met the girl!

Who knew Catra was the jealous type? Okay, she couldn’t ask that with as much ironic sarcasm as she would have liked to. Lonnie was too perceptive to pull the wool over her eyes, especially when the two of them shared an apartment together. And Scorpia…she’s probably talked her ear off a thousand times over to the point where Catra just know that woman was brighter than that bubbly, trusting personality would leave others to believe.

The thought trailed from the big, bulking woman to her dance club to the nagging need to get out of her room; get off her phone, out of her head and give herself something else to think about.

***

The Black Garnet was as popular as ever, not even a school night can keep these people away. But Catra could hardly blame them, good drinks and even better music, it was pretty much the best club in town.

Catra was a persistent presence on the dance floor, dancing off her emotions and letting the rhythm take full control of her body while the music flushed out the unnecessary thoughts in her mind. Her dancing tonight was wild, unpredictable but gorgeous in its own right, capturing the eyes of several club-goers, both regulars and newbies looking to see what all the fuss was about. It felt good. It felt right. _But it could feel better_ , one of the more persistent thoughts managed to pierce through her defenses, the song fading out just as it slipped through the chink in her armor.

She licked the sweat off her lips and ran her fingers through her thick, damp locks. Now was a good time for a drink, she told herself as her eyes flickering off to the bar, just as busy as ever but now felt like the perfect time for a drink.

She pushed her way through the crowd, not afraid to get a little rough as she made her way to the front of the pack where the bartender was serving up drink after drink to the unshrinking crowd. A set of golden eyes flashed up at Catra’s unmistakable presence, the large man’s hand lifting up to hear her order.

“Just a water!” she shouted over the thumping bass.

He silently raised an eyebrow at her, wondering if she was joking.

“Don’t give me that look! I’m not here to drink tonight.”

He shrugged his shoulders before moving to grab her a glass.

Catra’s finger idly tapped away on the countertop, picking out the beat playing in the air and sending tremors through the floor. She felt very conscious of her backside, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck tingle with anticipated suspense. Every few seconds, she would indulge the feeling, taking a peek over her shoulders to find nothing of interest there.

_Of course not, Adora wouldn’t dare,_ Catra thought to herself, if she didn’t have the guts to make the first move then she surely wouldn’t have it in her to approach Catra, in person, in the club she screwed up in the first time.

There was a clank that threw her tapping off, drawing her attention back to the bartender who stoically placed her drink in front of her. She took the glass up, tilted the rim towards her server in thanks before sipping at the straw protruding out of the glass.

“Catra!” she heard a familiar voice call to her, drawing her eyes towards the source to see Scorpia strolling in behind the bar counted and up to the bartender’s side. “Rogelio, why don’t you go on break? I get things covered here.”

He gave a nod of his head before turning away to leave the area and the shouting, protesting crowd behind. The crowd dispersed, apparently more interested in the eye candy than their drinks.

“So~” Scorpia’s sing-song tone started, “How are things?”

Catra’s shoulders shrugged, “You know, same-old, same-old.” she responded, nonchalant and reserve in her answer.

Scorpia was silent, studying Catra’s body language for any unusual signs, signals she didn’t normally put off. “Good, good,” the woman’s head nodded, “Any new… _interesting development_ lately?”

Catra stopped drinking, her eyes flaring to life, embedded with skepticism and suspicion of what her friend was trying to insinuate. Those eyes stared into the larger woman’s soul, fishing through the increasingly nervous gaze of the club’s owner.

“Scorpia,” she called the name like a mother calling her misbehaving child, “what did you do?”

Scorpia’s lips pursed together, her eyes averting from the intense gaze. “Now, before I answer that, I just want to let you know that everything I’ve ever done for you has been in your best interest.” the woman stalled for time.

“Scorpia,” Catra’s voice got lower.

“ _And_ I never mean to trouble you in any way no matter what.” she continued to digress.

“Scorpia,” she asked more pressure into the name, her eyes narrowing in annoyance.

“So really, you shouldn’t get too mad at me since I only want you to be the happiest you can-”

“SCORPIA!” Catra shouted, unable to take any more of this conversational foreplay.

“Oh okay!” the woman cracked, “Adora… might have come back here to find you, and I _might_ have run into her when she did…”

“Oh my god, you didn’t…”

“And I might have, sorta, kinda… gave her the idea of where she could find you.” Her large body braced itself, ready for the brunt of the smaller woman’s wrath.

“You WHAT?!” Catra’s voice shrilled, piercing through the pumping music in the air with her high-pitched cry, “Scorpia, what the hell?!”

“I’m sorry! She just sounded so genuine and sorry and I didn’t think that she’d hurt you or anything like that. And you two used to be so close and after everything you’ve been through and accomplished, I thought that you’d be ready to, you know, reconnect.”

She blabbered on and on and Catra could only catch so much of the woman’s rambling. The effort she put into trying to follow along took away from the energy she had to be upset at the woman, her glare softening into a disappointed scowl.

“Did she hurt you?” Catra just barely caught the question leaving the woman’s mouth.

Her heterochronic eyes widened slightly, the accusatory question getting to her as she recalled how their day together really went compared to how she thought it would go.

“I swear, if she hurt you, I’ll take care of her myself.” the woman, as gentle as a lame and _literally_ the biggest softie she has ever known, smacked her fist into the palm of her opposite hand, eyes ready to break her pacifistic code to get revenge for her friend.

“No!” Catra exclaimed before rethinking her tone, “No… she didn’t,”

“Oh,” the tension in Scorpia’s broad shoulders loosened, “Okay! Well, that’s good. So, how did it go?”

Catra looked into her glass, her fingers tracing through the condensation linking the surface as she saw Adora’s crystal blue eyes in the water. “Honestly,” she started, “it was nice.” the woman admitted, feeling more weight assed to the fact when she finally said it out loud. “We had fun together like old times… We had dinner, I showed her my dance studio… She was really… impressed? Amazed? I don’t know, but there was something in her eyes I never saw before… Like she was actually seeing me.”

Scorpia listened to her friend silently, the smile softening affectionately to such positive words leaving her lips and having those words relate back to her old friend. “That’s great to hear, Wildcat. So does this mean you’ll be seeing her again?”

Catra’s eyes turned back towards the dance floor, staring at the club-goers dancing and moving their bodies without fear or inhibition holding them down. “Actually… she asked if I could help her out with this final project she’s got at school,” she answered mindlessly.

“Well, that sounds fun! Are you going to do it?” Scorpia’s excited tone shouted.

Catra clammed up, her eyes hooded as she looked towards the ground, “I don’t know…”

What do you mean?” the woman raised a curious eyebrow, tilting her head slightly at the question.

The girl signed, running her fingers through her thick, dark locks as her eyes contemplated how to word these complicated feelings. “I don’t know, it’s just… why me, you know?” she looked back into Scorpia’s dark gaze, seeing how her explanation didn’t quite make it through.

“Why not you?”

“Because! She has all these new college friends that she hangs out with all the time. Why doesn’t she just ask them instead?”

“Maybe you have something that they don’t.”

“Please,” Catra rolled her eyes, “what could I have that they don’t?”

The platinum blonde regarded her for a moment, her gaze softening as she watched the scowl permeating her face. “Well… I think a lifelong friendship is pretty special to have.”

The scowl in her brows quickly vanished, feeling taken back by the statement. She felt speechless, unable to find any sort of comeback whatsoever.

Without anything to stop her, Scorpia continued, “How long was it that you told me you knew one another?”

Catra looked away, shrugging her shoulders as she answered, “For as long as I can remember, Adora’s always been there.”

“Right!” the woman exclaimed, “There’s a special bond that comes with something like that, one that can’t be replicated no matter how many new friends she has! There are things about her you know and _only_ you could know them. Same with Adora. I’m sure she knows you better than I ever could and that’s nothing to snuff at.” she claimed with an affirmative nod of her head.

She let that sink in, letting Scorpia’s words really cut through into her psyche before feeling the weight and presence of her cell phone in her pocket becoming an unbearable reminder of what she needed to do.

“Um, Scorpia?” a voice called for the owner as a young bartender, the newest face to the Black Garnet family, struggled with keeping up with the orders coming from his side of the bar, “A little help, please?”

“On my way!” she responded before looking down at Catra one more time, “I won’t tell you what you should and shouldn’t do, but I think you’d oughta give you two another shot.”

Catra’s golden and blue irises stared up at Scorpia, the pair glistening with enlightenment and gratitude at the words. She attempted to put it into words, to thank her for helping put things into perspective; however, before it could leave her mouth, the young bartender’s shrill voice called for his boss once more, starting to get a little panicked.

She chuckled, “You better go help Kyle before they eat him up alive.”

“Not on my watch!” Scorpia laughed before rushing over to provide her assistance.

Catra’s eyes followed the woman’s body as she made her way down the bar aisle, shaking her head slowly in amusement. She dug her phone out of her pocket, pulling up Adora’s last message. She took a deep breath, steadying herself before typing in the chat.

“Do Saturdays work for you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had handwritten the whole chapter in a notebook and typed it onto my computer while having Utada Hikaru's "Don't Think Twice" play on loop for the whole time and now I can't stop imagining Catra singing this song... pretty good motivation.


	7. Chapter 7

Adora could hardly believe her eyes when she saw the notification, could hardly believe the sender’s name in black, unforgettably bold print, and could hardly believe the preview of the message that showed on her phone’s screen. She had to _literally_ pinch herself… several times, just to make sure she hadn’t crashed at her desk and this was just some dream. The good news was that this definitely wasn’t a dream; bad news: she might have gone a little overboard with the pinching. But! The tingling on her skin was merely a tickle compared to the immense amount of relief and joy welling up in her chest.

For a while there, Adora thought she had screwed up royally last time, thinking she scared Catra off with the sudden request. Seriously, she hadn’t had Catra back in her life for a day and she was already asking favors of her?! And with her _school_ work, nonetheless. Like the woman wasn’t already busy enough with her own life! The blonde really berated herself after that one, but it looked like it all worked out fine after all that worrying and belly-aching. She wondered if the old friend made her wait as some kind of ploy to get Adora’s mind spinning from the social misstep or if she really did just need time to think about it. She really hoped for the latter but she wouldn’t put the former past the girl with her mischievous track record.

She shook her head of the question, it wasn’t important to know anyway. Right now, she had to send back her reply ASAP.

Adora stared at her typed response, debating whether or not to ass anything else or if her eagerness was getting across enough with just this. She ultimately decided that a message this excited needed something more to get the emotion across.

“Yeah! Saturdays are perfect! 😃”

Catra didn’t make her wait for long on her reply, the ripple dots floating on the screen for only a second before her message popped up.

“Cool”  
“Why don’t you swing by the studio at 6? 😼”

Adora couldn’t help smiling at herself as she read the message; couldn’t keep it from spreading across her cheeks as she typed her response either.

“Sounds good, I’ll be there.”

“Great! I’ll see ya soon”

A sigh left Adora’s body as she leaned back in her chair, letting it bend and creak against her weight while her hands pressed against her face, a wide beaming grin hiding behind her palms. She wasn’t sure how she was going to sleep tonight; her mind was much too deep in its euphoric state and her heart was beating much too loud at the thought of working with Catra like they used to do.

***

Saturday couldn’t get here fast enough. All through her classes between then and now, Adora felt absolutely fidgety like a kid hyped up on sugar. It was a good thing her classes mostly got her body moving otherwise she would have exploded. Even waiting for six was torture. She didn’t know how she managed to make it through that. But now the wait was over and Adora had arrived within a reasonable time window. Sure, it was only five minutes till but it was better to be early than to make Catra wait.

She pulled up to the dance studio, taking a few seconds to breathe and double-check her things. The zipper on her backpack was opened, shuffling through the contents inside. A change of clothes, deodorant, her music player and a Bluetooth speaker. Catra’s studio probably already had a sound system she could hook up to but Adora always said it was better to be safe than sorry. A notebook to jot stuff down and a pencil to jot stuff with made her as prepared as she could ever be.

People began spilling out of the building, some looking more tired and exhausted than others but it was a good enough sign as any that the last dance session had come to a close. The blonde took in a breath before blowing it out just as she opened her car door.

She stepped inside, seeing several students and attendees still lingering around, chatting and discussing the recent session with worn out breaths. Her eyes glanced around, wondering if Catra might be among them but she couldn’t see that recognizable wild mane among the small crowd.

“Looking for someone?” a voice asked her, getting Adora’s attention as she turned towards the source to meet it.

“Yeah actually, I was-” the blonde stopped and stared at the woman in front of her, her face instantly lighting up with recognition instantly. “Lonnie?”

“Adora? Is that seriously you? Holy-” Lonnie had to cover her mouth before the swear could leave her lips, laughing at her own efforts to censor her language. “It feels like it’s been forever! How have you been, girl?”

“Oh, you know, handing in there. But I heard you’ve been doing pretty well for yourself.” Adora responded with a wide smile, happy for the chance to see another good friend from her old dance school.

“Lemme guess, Catra already told you?” she asked with a playful roll of her eyes, knowing that if anyone was going to let Adora know, it would be her childhood friend with the fiery temper.

“Yeah…” the blonde answered, unable to help feeling a little guilty about her neglect with keeping up with Lonnie. The move to BMA got so hectic and the first few weeks were so crazy; she was ashamed to admit that she didn’t keep up communication with her or any of the people she left behind from her childhood days.

“Hey, it’s cool. I get it.” Lonnie patted her shoulder, “College gets stressful and sometimes you got to do what you got to do.”

Adora smiled softly at her old friend. She was always so level-headed and mature, seeing the bigger picture rather than letting the little things bother her. Adora respected that about the dreadlocked woman; admired it about her back then and still did even now.

“You have no idea,” the blonde chuckled solemnly. It'd be funnier if it weren’t still true.

Lonnie laughed, “That’s Bright Moon for you.” she stated, placing a hand on her hip as she looked back up at the blonde, “So, when did you and Catra start talking again? I didn’t think either of you had the guts to call a truce.”

“Actually, we ran into each other last week.” Adora chuckled but Lonnie wasn’t laughing, her eyes widening in shock. Not really “upset at Adora” shock, but more “I wasn’t expecting to hear that when I woke up this morning” kind of shock.

“Strange… why didn’t Catra… Oh… Oooh!” a lightbulb lit up in Lonnie’s head, her eyes glimmering at the new discovery that finally made the last week click into place.

Adora couldn’t quite place what Lonnie had figured out but she couldn’t ask either as a door clicked open and shut.

“Hey Adora!” the familiar voice called out, “What are you doing hanging around out- Oh, that explains it,” Catra stated with a raised brow as she saw her business partner catching up with the mutual comrade.

“Hey Catra, Adora was just telling me how you two ran into each other last weekend. Why didn’t you tell me you and Adora were back in touch? Would have really helped me figure out why you were in such a mood this week.” Lonnie taunted and teased her partner, a bit of payback for being one of the last people to know about the blonde’s reconnection to her old friend from the Horde.

Catra’s eyes widened, her body prickling with goosebumps as Lonnie threatened to give away her moment of emotional vulnerability to the cause of her “mood.”

“Catra, were you not feeling well?” Thankfully, Adora didn’t quite catch what Lonnie was laying out for her. Little mercies.

“I’m fine, Lonnie was just joking around!” Catra laughed, forcefully but it was a laugh. The noise distracted from how roughly she hooked an arm around Lonnie’s neck, pulling her in close and turning to whisper in her ear, “Can’t you hold off on backstabbing my dignity until we’re at home?”

“I dunno, we were just starting to catch up. You know how it goes.” Lonnie smirked as she whispered back. Catra wordlessly groaned at her, the low rumbling accompanied by a set of strikingly glaring eyes. Lonnie just chuckled, far too used to Catra’s death glare to find it threatening. “Alright, but you owe me a full explanation.”

“Deal!” Catra responded quickly, releasing Lonnie from her hold and watching her turn back to look at Adora.

“Anyway! I’d love to stay and chat some more but I promised Scorpia I’d help her out tonight.” she said as she rushed to the door, “Remember to lock up when you’re done!” she shouted and, like that, she was going, leaving just the two of them as the last of the members trickled out a while ago.

“Wow,” Adora whistled, “I’m honestly surprised that didn’t escalate as much as I thought it would. You guys really did get closer, didn’t you?”

“Yeah well, I would have strangled her in her sleep a long time ago if she wasn’t paying half the rent.” Catra huffed softly, shaking her head at the stilled entry door before turning. “C’mon, you can put your stuff down over there.”

Catra lead her into the dancing room, the space feeling just as surreal as the first time she stepped inside. Even more so to think she’d be the one dancing in here this time. She placed her bag on the floor, propping it against the wall before her hands grabbed at the bottom of her hoodie, peeling it up her torso and off her body to reveal the white sports bra lying just underneath.

Too engrossed in getting herself comfortable, the blonde didn’t notice the mismatched eyes studying her body through the reflection of the mirrors. Now, Catra wasn’t one to ogle her students, you get used to seeing topless and half-naked women when watching their sweat glistened bodies becomes a part of your job. But she couldn’t stop her staring gaze in time, already trapped in admiring the toned body that only got more impressively alluring with age.

By the time Adora had placed her hoodie down with the rest of her belongings, Catra’s eyes had pried off her body, distracting herself with setting up the sound system at the corner of the room. The focused intently on the buttons and dials, making the soundboard out to be some kind of complicated device with how she fiddled with it. The blonde would never realize how user-friendly the model actually was and Catra would never tell her otherwise.

“Why don’t we get started with you showing me what you have so far?” the heterochromatic eyes flashed upward from the sound system, waiting for the blonde to give her the music.

“What I have?” Adora parroted.

“Yeah, how am I supposed to know what I’m working with if you don’t give me a sample?”

“Right! Right, because I totally have… something…” If that wasn’t a clue to how badly Adora was struggling with this…the dark-haired woman was already having an idea that she was going to have her work cut out for her.

Catra chuckled, “C’mon, work with me here. I already expect it to be crap, you don’t have to try and impress me with it.” Her hand stretched out, fingers curling to beckon the blonde forward. “Now out with it, show me what you’ve got.”

Adora let out a sigh, seeing no reasonable way out of this. At least Catra will see just how badly she needed her old dancing companion’s help. Reluctantly, she pulled out the music player, stepping closer to the woman and handing it over.

“Which one is it?”

“I already have it pulled up, you can just hit play.” the blonde answered, her face already looking mortified and the music hadn’t even started yet. Definitely not a good sign.

Catra hooked the player into the sound machine, the speakers buzzing at the initial contact. Her eyes glance up, catching Adora’s nervous gaze still lingering on her face as she stood in the middle of the dance floor.

“Hey, just relax. I’ll only judge you a little bit.” she teased her, poking fun to lighten her mood and loosen the tension in her shoulders.

“Ha, ha,” Adora rolled her eyes at her, shaking her head at the other woman with a slight smirk on her face.

Catra chuckled softly before turning her gaze downward to hit play on the music player. There was a bit of static at the start of the track, an artistic touch to the song before the melody began to kick in over the speakers. Modern swing, Catra noted, not a bad choice for the blonde. It looked like her appreciation for the classics didn’t quite die out over the years. Her eyes shifted upward, watching Adora’s body bounce to the beat, getting itself used to the tempo.

The dancer started with some fancy footwork in the song’s first verse, her legs shifting and her feet shuffling with quick precision and timing. She had the technique down, her skills just as sharp as ever; however, there was something off about her movements.

The song got more energetic, entering into its first chorus and Adora’s movements followed suit, her legs swinging and kicking to the intensifying beat. Catra’s eyes narrowed critically, studying the blonde’s moves carefully as the off feeling steadily nagged at her mind. And then it hit her: she wasn’t dancing, she was just following the steps. Her mind was so focused on each subsequent step and movement that she hardly looked like she was living through the experience. It was like she was watching a robot on her dance floor, moving its body and limbs as it was programmed to.

Adora’s body stopped before the second chorus could start, the song playing out for a minute before Catra remembered to turn it off. “That’s what I have so far,” she told her, breathing deeply to regain her composure, “What do you think?”

The blonde didn’t need to hear the answer, the terrified look on her friend’s face was enough to say it all. But she heard the response regardless.

“What did they do to you?” Catra asked as she shook her head slowly in disbelief.

Adora groaned, her body falling back as she laid on the floor with her hands pressed into her face, shielding her eyes from the bright light blaring down from the ceiling. “Was it that bad?”

Catra nodded her head slowly, her lips pursed in a sympathetic look. After all, she’s always seen this woman as a dancing aspiration, someone she could pit herself against and grow with along the way. Even if she was a sucker for the classics, her dancing always used to be so full of life and emotion, always having something special about it. There wasn’t anything special about this.

“I’ll give you this much,” Catra started as she stepped closer to her despairing friend, crouching down beside her defeated body, “You’ve got technique. Your footwork is as impeccable as ever, but it’s dull. It doesn’t really feel like you’re moving to dance. It’s more like you’re just moving to move… That make sense?”

Adora sighed softly, “Yeah, that makes sense.” she responded.

Leave it to Catra to pick out the cause behind her slump so quickly. Although her critique was a bit of a blow to her ego, it was still reassuring to know that the woman still knew and understood Adora so well, even after their three-year hiatus from one another. It placed a soft smile on the blonde’s lips, giving her the strength to sit up and face the music.

“So… think you can still help me through this?” she asked, staring into Catra’s eyes that turned smug at the obvious question.

“Just who do you think I am? If anyone can whip you back into shape, obviously it’s going to be me.” she made the bold claim without any hesitation or doubt, grinning at her friend confidently.

Adora met the grin with a grateful smile of her own, beaming at the dark-haired woman with a hint of a rosy blush crawling onto her cheeks. “Thanks, Catra! I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

Catra looked taken back by the ray of sunshine radiating brightly off the blonde’s glowing face. She stared mindlessly for a second, too infatuated with the expression to think to look away, but she did eventually, adjusting the sweatband that rested on her head to keep her hair out of her face, attempting to hide the heated look coming onto her own cheeks.

“Don’t mention it,” she managed to squeeze out before clearing out her throat. “So, when’s this thing due, anyway?”

“Oh, uh… the first Friday of May, I think…” her blue eyes rolled towards the ceiling as she referred to her internal calendar.

“Hm… that’ll only give us four weeks to work with…” Adora stared at Catra as she continued to silently contemplate a strategy for the two. “I got it!” she finally exclaimed, “We’ll use a shock treatment!”

The other woman’s eyes widened, “I know it was bad but I didn’t think it was _that_ bad.” she muttered nervously.

“Not literally,” Catra laughed, poking a finger into Adora’s forehead, “You’ve been stuck in your comfort zone for way too long.” she elaborated, removing her finger as a mischievous smirk came over her lips, “So, I’m going to take you _out_ of your comfort zone.”

Adora didn’t know what Catra meant by that, but knowing her, she could already guess that she was in for more of a ride than she could have ever predicted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, everything is now in place for sexy shenanigans. Thank you all for sticking with me this far, we're gunna get into the really fun and juicy bits next chapter ;9


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Behold the beginning of the gay panic. Buckle your pants, people, it's going to be a ride.

Adora’s finger tapped incessantly against the surface of her desk with one hand while the other pressed firmly into her deeply flushed face, her lips pressed against her palm as her eyes watched the screen of her computer intensely. She knew Catra intended to get her out of her comfort zone during their sessions but this…

Her upper body leaned in closer to the screen, barely paying any attention to the music playing in her ears. She was much too focused on the visuals that accompanied it. See, to get Adora mentally ready for the whole comfort zone extraction, her friend had sent her a couple of “videos” as samples of what they’d be doing. They were choreography demonstration videos. Catra’s choreography demonstration videos… Catra’s incredibly sexy and unspeakably dirty choreography demonstration videos.

It was all just dancing, showing off the dance studio’s talent—a portfolio if you will. But watching Catra like this, dancing and flaunting that dangerously tempting body of hers, emphasis on the swell of her breasts and the flexibility of her waist and hips, felt downright sinful. Was she really allowed to watch her best friend like this? This was just dancing, right? Hypnotic… borderline pornographic dancing.

She clicked on another video once Catra’s segment in the last was done, a solo demonstration rather than the ones that featured her students after learning the routines. The song was slower than the last, more sensual and Catra’s easy movements and fluid body reflected the soft tempo.

Adora leaned in a bit closer to her computer, told herself she was merely studying ever captured frame of the flirtatious dance. She told herself that this wasn’t her memorizing Catra’s visage as she reflected the idea of seducing a lover with irresistible bedroom eyes. She insisted to herself that she totally wasn’t imagining those eyes being meant for her. That would just be inappropriate, wouldn’t it? Fantasizing about your friend/project partner just because she looks unbelievably good on the dance floor? Catra didn’t send her these to suggest anything else but the idea of getting Adora to feel just as comfortable about moving her own body just as seductively. This is just preparation material. Proper… completely platonic… preparation material.

“Hey, Adora,” the blonde yelped as her bedroom door was suddenly swung open, her pink-haired roommate walking in, “me and Bow were thinking of ordering a pizza, what do you think? Meat lovers supreme or… what are you doing?”

In a frantic attempt to hide what she had been watching, which, seriously, who does that with dance choreography videos, her hands pressed against the screen of her monitor, hiding the player before her roommate could see what she had been staring so intently at for the past… who knows how long at this point.

“Glimmer!” she called her name with a flustered look covering her face, “Haven’t you heard of knocking?”

“I did knock,” her friend retorted before pointing back at the screen, “what are you trying to hide there?” she asked, not letting this conversational hook get away without a fight.

“Nothing!” Adora responded, a bit too shrill for it to be “nothing.”

“Yeah right, like anyone reacts like that over no- Wait! Are you watching porn?!” the pink-haired girl exclaimed, much too loudly for the midday hour.

“What? No!” the blonde shouted back, her defensiveness not helping her case in the slightest.

“C’mon, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Everybody watches porn,”

“Seriously, it’s not porn!”

“Oh yeah, prove it.” Glimmer’s hands reached for her friend’s wrists, tugging at the obstruction to pry her palms away from the screen.

“Glimmer! No, wait!” Adora protested but it was already too late, her hands slipping down the monitor just far enough for Glimmer to see that it was, indeed, not porn, but it was definitely in its own league of “materials.”

“I honestly can’t tell if this is just as dirty as the porn.” the pink haired girl stated with a blank expression, staring at Catra’s dance videos that had already autoplayed into the next item in the playlist.

Adora groaned, pressing her hands into her face as the blush spread to the tips of her ears. It didn’t matter what she was actually looking at, the look on Glimmer’s face was enough of a message that she had already misunderstood the situation to be less instructional and more lascivious in nature.

“Since when have you been into watching your friend’s dirty dancing vids?” she asked, looking down at the embarrassed blonde with a raise of her eyebrow.

“It’s not,” Adora took a deep breath, “It’s not what you think. Catra-”

“Hold that thought!” Glimmer interjected, holding a finger up to her friend’s face before she could explain any further before running out of the room. Adora was left to stare dumbfoundedly at the door, swung wide opened during the energetic girl’s brief retreat. When she returned, she returned with Bow in tow, pushing him first into the room before turning her attention back to the blonde’s blank, confused expression. “Okay, continue.”

“Hold on… what’d you get Bow for?” she needed to ask, a finger pointing to their third roommate who was obviously in the middle of enjoying a smoothie when he was being fetched.

“Uh, I’m not missing out on any new developments in the ‘catradora’ drama.” he answered with a slight roll of his eyes, chuckling as if it was the only logical response.

“Catradora?” the expression got her even more confused.

Bow shrugged his shoulders, “Just a little nickname we thought of for the two of you. Way quicker than saying ‘Adora’s drama with Catra.’”

Adora was about to question it more but Glimmer wasn’t having it. “Now spill!” she exclaimed, “What's been going on between you two?”

Her blue eyes flashed between the two of them before relenting, knowing full well she wouldn’t be able to keep it from them. Even if she did try, it wouldn’t be for long. She didn’t know why, but they always managed to read her like a book no matter how hard she tried to hide it.

She let out a sigh, “Well, remember how we went to get dinner together a while ago?” she asked, needing some preface to start with.

“Right, the date,” Glimmer nodded her head.

“It wasn’t… hah, nevermind. Anyway, it turns out she runs a dance studio with this other friend of mine from my old school and she took me to see it.”

“That sounds cool,” Bow’s eyes widened, impressed at the achievement.

“I know, right?! So, anyway, she gave me a bit of a demonstration,” Adora could already spy the smirk crawling its way to Glimmer’s lips, her eyes narrowing at the girl to keep her from interrupting. When she kept silent, Adora continued, “and I was so amazed that I kind of asked her to help me out with my project…without thinking about what I was saying…” she muttered the last bit, rubbing the back of her head slightly as the memory replayed in her mind.

“And?” Glimmer pressed her on, “What did she say?”

“She actually agreed to it, so now she’s helping with getting me out of my slump. And this,” Adora gestured to the computer screen, “is her way of helping me. Not whatever your gutter mind was thinking.” the blonde pointed towards Glimmer’s head, insisting that whatever lewd assumption she was leaving be banished from her mind.

Glimmer’s violet gaze flashed between Adora, to the computer monitor, to Adora again. “I still think it all sounds very suggestive,” she confessed.

“Glimmer!” her named was called in a chastising tone.

“What? It’s not like there’s anything wrong with it. I just don’t get why you two have to have such a roundabout excuse. If you like looking at her dance, you can just say so.”

“Glimmer, remember what we talked about? That thing about tact and how you lack it sometimes?” Bow asked, pressing a hand against the old friend and reeling her back into a more discrete disposition.

“It’s not about tact, Glimmer’s just wrong.” the blonde stated, crossing her arms over her chest as she held her ground. She was absolutely determined to go down with this ship of denial.

“I-” her roommate was about to retort before being stopped by their peacekeeper, watching him as he shook his head in subtle advice to drop it. Besides, it was best for things like these to sort themselves out for the parties directly involved. “Alright, fine. But how is this supposed to help you, anyway?”

The blonde softened, relieved that they were able to move on with it and turning to pause the video just as it was about ready to play another. “Well, she said that I need to get out of my comfort zone, and this was the best way to do it.”

Adora could see that Glimmer wanted to say something, something that would have carousel-ed them back around to square one. But Bow stopped her, pressing a hand against the shorter girl’s mouth and smiling at the blonde. “Well, I think I speak for the both of us when I say that we’re happy things seem to be going well for the two of you.” he said before directing the intense grin to his childhood friend, “Right, Glimmer?”

Glimmer met the gaze for a moment before nodding her head within the headlock.

Adora smiled at the two of them, happy for the support despite the slight hiccup. But she knew Glimmer meant well, she was just too honest for her own good sometimes. And, honestly, it was one of her charms when she used it for the forces of good.

“Thanks you guys.” she said before minimizing the window on her computer, “Now then, about that pizza,”

“Right!” Glimmer shouted, pushing Bow’s hand out of the way when she was reminded of what she came into Adora’s room for in the first place. The trio left the room, deciding to discuss dinner outside of the blonde’s personal space. Meetings like these were best done in the family room anyway.

***

“Alright, let’s get that body of your all nice and limber for me.” Catra’s hands clapped together, pulling Adora out of the mindless trance that was her brain in her stretching pre-workout stretching.

“Catra, you’ve already convinced me into doing your more… flirtatious dances. Must you add in the innuendos?” Adora asked with a short sigh as she stood up from her seated position.

“Aw, you know me better than that.” her friend smirked, a soft chuckle falling from her lips before starting up the music, letting the mildly energetic beat echo across the room. “We’ll start with our hips.” she explained, stepping closer to the center the room and facing the mirrors that lined the walls, “Just follow my lead, alright? We’re going to go right,” Catra’s hips shifted with a slight pop to one side, “up,” they thrusted forward, her core tightening at the position, “left,” the popped to the other side, “and back.” her hips pushed towards the blonde, the roundness of her butt feeling emphasized to her eyes, especially in those short black shorts of hers.

Adora focused her attention elsewhere, well, tried to at least as she focused on following the girl’s movements. But, the thing about a wall of mirrors was that nothing could stay hidden for long, and with just the two of them, Catra was able to pick up on her telltale mistakes.

She glanced over her shoulder at the blonde, “Adora,” she called her, “try keeping your shoulders still. Really feel it working in your hips.”

“Uh, right!” Adora corrected herself, hoping to any deity that she couldn’t see the heated look she could feel coming onto her face.

She followed each pop of Catra’s hips, mimicked the motions of it while attempting to focus on her own body. Her mind isolated the sensation, fixated on how loose she could feel her core becoming in the exercise.

“There you go, now you’re getting it,” Catra praised her, unable to keep her dance instructor commentary to herself as she watched the blonde through the mirror. Her eyes glanced downward at the other’s waist and hips, tracing the lines of her defined abs and muscled that only became more pronounced with each flex and thrust of those hips of hers.

“Alright, now smooth it out.” she gave the next step, letting her hips rotate in a fluid motion, watching Adora follow suit. “Yeah, just like that.”

Adora pursed her lips together, keeping her eyes fixed on their shared reflection, fighting her urge to look towards Catra’s plump rump and notice just how delicious it looked from every angle.

“And reverse,” Catra interjected, her hips now spinning themselves clockwise.

This was Glimmer’s fault, Adora told herself as she followed the instruction. If she hadn’t put the association between porn and her old friend’s dancing, her mind wouldn’t be so far stuck in the gutter. She wouldn’t be sneaking peaks and noticing every line of her friend’s beautifully toned body had it not been for what her roommate told her last night.

“Hey Adora,” the dark haired girl called the blonde back to attention, turned now to face her as she began to start the next exercise.

“Yeah?” Adora responded, too deep in concentration to realize they had stopped.

Catra let out a soft chuckle, “C’mon, it’s going to feel like a long night if you faze out on my like that.” she stated, placing a hand on her hips and watching her with a raised brow.

“Sorry,” the other woman apologized, internally chastising herself for the trouble she was putting her old friend through. She ought to be paying more attention. After all, she was taking time out of her schedule to help Adora out. It was the least she could do to show her gratitude.

“You don’t have to apologize. Just stay with me,” Catra waved off the apology, smiling softly as she turned back towards the mirror again. “Okay, we’re going to switch off to our chest next,” she announced and Adora could feel her will to resist wilt in her mind. And they hadn’t even finished the warm-ups yet!

Well, Catra had one thing right: tonight was going to be a long night.


	9. Chapter 9

“I’ll demonstrate what you’ll be learning and then we’ll break it down piece by piece.” Catra explained to Adora, remote for the sound system in her hand as she waved it by face with the intent to press the play button.

Adora nodded her head, standing at attention to receive Catra’s dance. It’d be alright, she told herself, after all, she had to mentally brace herself with those videos. She wasn’t going to let herself be caught off guard again.

Catra let a smirk come to her lips as she pressed the button on the remote, using the second the system used to register the command to place the device down. Her back turned towards the blonde, letting the first few beats of the song play out while her hips popped and swung from side to side to get herself used to the music. The subtle soft beats were soon replaced with a tone that was harder and louder and her hips took its lead with more dramatic thrusts in Adora’s direction.

She followed their movements, letting them sink into her mind with an almost hypnotized stare. They rolled and rotated, turning Catra’s body back to her student and having her watch as her hips thrusted forward, a hand resting towards her inner thigh.

Adora could feel her heart racing in anticipation as she watched the dark haired teacher’s demonstration, feeling her seductive curves and gyrating ass worming its way under Adora’s skin and sending goosebumps to cover her body. And the lyrics of the song weren’t helping her either. It was _literally_ singing about oral sex and Catra was dancing like she wanted the blonde to give it to her. That burning fire in her mismatched eyes that parched Adora’s throat like a searing desert, was it really all just an act to make her movements more genuine and fitting for the music. If it was, she was really good at it.

Olive hands snaked up her lithe body, her hips popping to one side while her chest popped to the other. They crawled up her slender neck, a blank canvas that glowed under the fluorescent light. Up past her jaw, one settled to frame her moist lips with a spread of her fingers while the other pushed her hair up out of her face to show off the smoldering, dark looked that came over her eyes—predatory and fit for no better setting than the bedroom.

One blink and that look in her eyes was gone, switching back to the Catra Adora always knew growing up. The blonde had to swallow her own cumulated saliva, wetting her windpipes but only slightly.

“Think you can handle that?” Catra asked, letting out a heavy breath to help get her breathing back to a steady rhythm.

Adora blinked her unbelievably dry eyes, needing to blink a few times, actually, to make up for her unblinking stares, before chuckling softly, “You’re really not holding back on me, are you?” she asked.

“Nope,” the other declared, grinning as she stepped closer to her friend. “First one is easy. Just thrust your hips back to the beat with a bit of a pulse.” she explained, turning her back to the blonde once more and moving slowly to emphasize every subtle movement of her body. A hand slapped against the right side of her hip, making her flesh jiggle slightly at the impact. “You’ll start with the right side,” she told her before already getting started with giving her student the reference she would need to learn the moves.

They progressed steadily through each segment of the song, stringing together each part without musical assistance so they could focus on the movements first before adding the melody. Catra would move Adora along after she showed to have gotten the move down well enough, her aptitude for learning dance steps shining through brightly, but she was still much too stiff for Catra’s liking.

“Adora, what are you thinking about?” she asked as the blonde silently ran through the steps on her own.

“Huh?” Adora asked, for a moment thinking that she was caught with her less than pure thoughts.

“What you’re dancing, what are you thinking about?” she repeated the question, elaborating on it the second time.

Adora wasn’t sure how to answer that, never really thinking much about it whenever she was dancing. Even contemplating it now, she was drawing a blank. What was she always thinking about?

Catra sighed, “If you’re thinking it’s enough to just think about what you have to do next then you’re already doing it wrong.”

That got the blonde’s attention, her blue eyes, receptive and ready to receive her teacher’s wisdom, stared at the dark haired girl. “Then, what do you think about?” she asked, needing to hear her old friend’s perceptive on the art.

Catra was taken back for a moment, not because she didn’t have an answer to it but because she wondered how honest of an answer she could give. She touched her finger to her chin, contemplating her response for a moment before her eyes flickered back to Adora’s curious expression, spotting the absolute ignorance behind those crystal blue eyes.

She asked with a sly smirk spreading across her lips, “You really want to know what I think about when I’m dancing?”

The blonde nodded slowly, the consequences of her action coming only as an afterthought as that same seductive glimmer flashed in Catra’s heterochromatic eyes.

“I think about a captive audience under my complete and merciless control.” Adora fought to keep her expression steady, to keep her body from showing any signs that the declaration had any effect on her. Catra continued, “I think about the person who I want to watch me dance and the look on their face as they helplessly squirm within their own lust because of me.” A finger pointed towards the blonde’s blank expression, the smirk turning more playful, her teeth biting lightly into her lips. “Actually, that face you make, open mouthed and fixated stares, that’s the kind of expression that gets me really riled up.”

Adora was left absolutely speechless, unable to comprehend the meaning behind that last confession. What did that mean? Was it because her face was a good example or because it was her that Catra was thinking about? And why give such a vivid answer too? Adora knew that her old friend’s favorite pass time used to be messing with the blonde, but the lingering effects it has, the tingles that raced through her body and flirting between her legs, was a bit much for just messing around.

If she was just messing with Adora’s mind, she wasn’t fessing up to it, leaving the blonde to assume that it was just an extremely effective joke just to get a good reaction out of her. “That’s… some thought process.” she was able to get out after her long silence.

Catra’s shoulders shrugged, humbling her methods. “It helps to embody the spirit of sexiness if you go all out with your wildest fantasies.”

“Is there anybody like that?” Adora asked before thinking about what she was asking. The other woman looked back at her, a brow raised for further elaboration. “You know, someone specifically that you think of?”

Catra watched her for a moment longer before pursing her lips, a laugh pushing air past them. “Pff, no. Of course not. I mean, I’m already mentally swamped enough as it is. If that kind of person existed, they’d had to be really special to be worth it.” she began rubbing the back of her neck bashfully, getting a bit shyer about the aspect of having someone special to dance for.

The blonde felt a surge of relief at the answer but quite place why that could be. Maybe it was because she liked the idea of being Catra’s top priority people wise. A bit conceited of her, sure, but she was pretty confident that her old friend was offering private lessons to just anyone. Maybe, after all this time, Adora still wanted to maintain her position as Catra’s favorite, wanting that chance to worm her way back into Catra’s number one.

“Alright then, let’s move on.” Catra snapped Adora out of her train of thought, her eyes lighting up with her mental attendance. “Try thinking of an imaginary audience for yourself. Someone you really want to impress and keep fixated on you. Maybe that’ll help.”

She nodded her head, not know who it was that would appear in her head but feeling like it was worth a shot.

The advice did help her somewhat. At least Catra noticed how her movements were looser, less inhibited as her body and mind got used to the idea of flaunting herself in a sexual manner. There was one part that the dark haired girl felt could use a bit more of a push to get the dance just right for their first session. The last bit of the choreographed segment, a part that called for the blonde’s hips to spin like a deadly whirlpool, just didn’t feel right. She wasn’t feeling herself being dragged in as deep into the vortex as she would have liked.

She raised up a hand, halting Adora’s movements before stepping forward. “Hang on. For that part, I want to try something,” she told her, her finger curling and beckoning for the blonde to step closer and close the distance between the two’s bodies.

She felt a hand grip around her hips, her teacher’s leg pushing between her own and spreading her feet apart. Her body was manipulated, shaped like putty in Catra’s warm touch. The blonde felt the trailing touch of Catra’s fingertips snake down the back of Adora’s legs, bending them at the knee before stepping back and removing her hands from her student’s hot body.

She examined the position she had placed the other in, an intense, searing gaze raking up and down Adora’s body before nodding her head. “Alright, now that you’ve got the stance, let's work on your hip’s rhythm.” Catra explained, turning away from the blonde and backing into her front.

Her blue eyes widened, staring downward as her old friend pressed her hips into her pelvis, feeling the full softness of her ass as she slotted their bodies together. “Um, Catra? What are you…?” her voice felt much too dry in her throat, making the question soft and barely audible. She was sure Catra wouldn’t have been able to hear her if her ear hadn’t been so close.

“Hm? C’mon Adora, don’t go getting weird on me. It’s not like we’ve never done this before.” the object of her internal panic laughed softly, her body rumbling against Adora’s chest at the gesture. “Just try to match my tempo, okay?” she whispered softly, her hot breath hitting Adora’s neck.

The blonde’s body tensed, trying to hold back the shivers threatening to quiver across her body. She felt Catra’s soft hands grip at the backs of Adora’s, moving them to hold onto the sides of Catra’s hips. Adora licked her unbearably dry lips as her acute sense of touch noticed how much fuller her old friend’s hips felt compared to when that used to do things like this. Back then, they were just joking around, a carefree, rebellious joke against Mrs. Weaver’s posh dance routines that had grown old and stale with constant repetition. She never thought about how good Catra’s ass felt pressed firmly against her, how nice it felt to mold her chest into the girl’s backside. Adora suspected that she shouldn’t be noticing these tiny, little details, that she shouldn’t be paying them any mind. But, as their hips continued to move together, her fingertips brushing against the edge of Catra’s crotch, she found those tiny details growing exponentially into giant problems.

“See, now you’re getting it,” Catra said in a light voice, pulling Adora’s attention downward to catch a glimpse into her teacher’s sports bra.

The blonde swallowed and pulled her gaze upward, “Am I really?” she asked, her voice cracking uncontrollably.

She felt the rumblings of her chuckle again, “Yeah, your hips are finally moving just right. Guess you’re _really_ the hands-on type.” Her mismatched eyes glanced towards the mirror in front of them, catching Adora’s flushed expression in its reflection. “How do you feel? Feeling sexy yet?”

“I’m definitely feeling something…” Adora answered, forcing a chuckle from her throat which only amused her friend even more.

“Well, it’s a start,” Catra settled with the feedback, stepping away from Adora’s body and letting her hands fall back to her side.

The air of the room hit Adora’s body colder when she was left alone compared to before she felt how hot Catra’s body temperature was. _Did_ the room get colder or was the blonde’s senses just out of it?

“Okay, show me that part one more time.” Catra instructed, watching as Adora simulated what her teacher just showed her.

She couldn’t let it show that her mind was elsewhere, that her body was able to imprint on Catra’s example and that she was, indeed, paying attention to what she was supposed to. It didn’t feel as good without Catra’s own hips guiding hers but every little bird had to fly on its own.

Catra nodded her head, “Great, much better.” her body turned back towards the mirror, picking up the remote to start again, “Alright, let's run through it from the top.”

They went through the dance several times together until Adora felt her body tapping against the limit of that abundance of stamina she felt so proud of. She felt like she was finally getting somewhere, finally taking a step forward in the right direction, finally feeling something again.

“I think we can call it a night…” Catra panted, downing a large gulp from her water bottle before looking towards Adora who had collapsed onto the sweat dripped floor. Not the most sanitary in the world but when you’re pooped, you’re pooped. “I feel like we’ve made some real progress here, don’t you think?” she asked, stepping closer and crouching by the blonde, offering her a sip from her bottle.

“Yeah… It feels like something’s clearing up in my head.” the blonde gasped, reaching up and drinking from the bottle without much thought.

She heard a chuckle come from her old friend, pulling her eyes up to see the soft smirk playing at her lips, “That’s good… cus’ I’ll be pushing your limits until the last minute.”

Adora raised a brow, sitting up slightly on her elbows as her eyes questioned just want the old friend was conspiring in that mercilessly unreserved mind of hers. “Meaning?”

“That’s a surprise.” a finger pressed against her lips, eyes glimmering with a look the blonde could only describe as naughty and absolutely wicked, an unbelievably nasty plot brewing behind that enticing gaze of hers.

Adora gulped, wondering if her sneaky gazing and tainted thoughts were known to the dark haired girl. Who was she kidding? Of course Catra knew! Those eyes were more than capable of staring into Adora’s most immoral soul. And those eyes—those deep, rich eyes—made a silent promise to the blonde. That there was no backing up from here. The only way to go was up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! It was a double whammy all along. I actually finished the first chapter and then thought to myself that there could be more sexy shenanigans, so I give you a double chapter post.   
> Also, thank you for the kind words, they really are an inspiration moving forward in this fanfic journey.


	10. Chapter 10

Their first dance session was already a couple of nights ago and Catra still couldn’t get over Adora’s face from the little lesson and demonstration in seduction. And the way her eyes went helplessly blank at the thought of her next lesson: absolutely _priceless_! The blonde had no idea how much she relished making her uptight ass squirm, watching that straight-laced face turn bright pink from the tips of her ears down to her chest. She had to hold herself back from laughing out loud as she sat at the front desk, leaning back in the black leather chair with a bit of a swivel to get out the excess energy.

And she didn’t look half bad after she was done belly-aching and feeling overly conscious about herself. All those years of dancing and being placed in the leading roles with their lifts and carries did wonders for the blonde’s body. She was hot back in high school, but now, she was an Amazonian goddess. Seriously, how can she be worried about how she looked with a body like that? It’s downright criminal!

But, she supposed, that’s just how Adora always was: modest… humble… oblivious. She was a complete foil to Catra’s cocky, smug attitude, having grown comfortable and confident in her own body’s sex appeal. She wondered how the blonde would look if her own gaze was an enticingly alluring as her body; if her crystal blue eyes glazed themselves over with seductive lust, taken by the music and dance. How would she look if that gaze could pull Catra in as deeply as she had dragged Adora? She’d be willing to bet everything she owned and more that the blonde would be absolutely, deliciously irresistible if she were to get serious with her sexual glances.

“See you next week, Ms. Catra!” a small girl called to her, waving her hand as her mother led her out the door.

Catra gave a wave back to their young student, her mind effectively pulled out of her overactive imagination. She shouldn’t be fantasizing about tall gorgeous blondes with lovely blue bedroom eyes anyway. A: she was still on the clock, and B: she still had to come up with something to up her game. She couldn’t go throwing around threats of sexy torture and _not_ have anything to back her up. Not to mention she had already set the bar pretty high the first night. Dammit me, she cursed herself before hearing her cellphone ring.

She dug the device out of her pocket, reading the caller ID before answering, “’Sup.”

“Eey baby girl, you mind doing me a huge solid?”

Catra remained silent, letting her caller take the hint and just keep talking.

“So, I think I left my bad there after my last class.”

“Again? Seriously, how many times is that?”

“I know, I’m awful! You mind running it over to me?”

Catra hummed, turning in her chair as she questioned if she should bother or let the girl learn her lesson already.

“Please? I’ll totally own you one for this.”

Her golden and blue eyes lit up with inspiration, a smirk spreading to her lips as the idea of the century flashed in her mind.

“Sure, I’ll get it to you.” she answered, turning and raising herself from her seat.

“Thanks! You’re an angel, doll!” the caller exclaimed before hanging up.

Catra lowered the phone from her ear, pulling up Adora’s messenger and typing away at the keys. “Hey, Imma need you to wear some shorts for the next session.”

She got her reply in a matter of minutes, “Why shorts?”

“I already told you”  
“It’s a surprise😼”

***

Adora couldn’t figure out the reasoning for the sudden wardrobe request. When she had told her roommates about the unusual request, Glimmer suggested that maybe she’d be getting a crash course in twerking. She hoped to all the heavenly beings that it wasn’t twerking.

She stepped out of her car, feeling the brisk, early spring air chill her legs as she stepped to the studio’s doors. She couldn’t step in fast enough, walking into the building that was much emptier closer to their sic o’clock appointment. She looked around, eyeing for Catra before stepping closer to the dance-room doors, suspecting she’d find her inside. She was right on the money, she was in there, and talking to…someone she had no idea as to who they were, standing next to a pole that definitely wasn’t there before. It was too late to give the two their privacy now, the door creaking already alerted the two of them that she had arrived.

“Hey Adora, come over here. There’s someone I want you to meet.” Catra called the blonde, beckoning for her to join them.

So it was someone that they’d be working with today, Adora figured. Why else would Catra be introducing anyone to her?

Adora stepped closer, drawing the attention of the warm caramel toned girl dressed in her sleeveless crop-top and short denim shorts.

She gave a polite smile as Catra gestured towards her, “This is Sonia, one of our part-time instructors. Sonia, this is Adora, the one I was telling you about.”

“It’s so nice to meet you! Great to finally have a face to put with a name. And let me just say, the name totally fits.” the girl, Sonia, took Adora by the hand and shook it happily.

“Yeah, um, likewise, I guess.” Adora smiled nervously, still confused as to what Catra was planning including a third. “So, what do you teach?”

“Pole dancing!”

Oh… oh no, her widened blue eyes turned towards the huge grin spreading wide across Catra’s glimmering and satisfied face.

“Surprise!” the old friend called out, walking closer to hook an arm around Adora’s neck, dragging her down slightly with her shorter stature. “C’mon, Sonia here is a straight-up professional. She’s even performed in competitions.”

“Wait, there are competitions?” Adora was drawn out of her shock momentarily by the intrigue.

Sonia laughed, a hand pressing against her lips to muffle the sound. “Honey, if we can break our necks with one bad move, you bet we’re going to be competing.” she teased, although Adora was certain that there was some truth behind her words.

“Yeah, that’s why I had to bring Sonia in, best to have someone highly trained with something like this. Don’t want you breaking anything.” Catra shrugged her shoulders, accepting that she wasn’t the best person to teach pole dancing techniques. Acting as a demonstrator, sure, but not teach.

“Wait, don’t you usually have to sign waivers for that?”

Indeed they do and sign away Adora did as she handed that slip back to her old friend, thus accepting to take on the challenge of…pole dancing.

***

“So,” Sonia clapped her hands together, getting Adora’s attention as she finished some warm-up stretches, “Catra told me about your little project, and to keep the sanctity of your project partner bond, I’m going to have her show for you the techniques.”

The blonde’s eyes flashed over to her dark-haired friend, watching her wave her hand and wink in her direction. This was going to be fun, but she supposed, she couldn’t be hit by the same trick twice, right?

“Good? Great! Then we’ll start with some basics. If you’ll please,”

Catra strode over to the polished chrome polish, her fingers curling around its smooth surface and nails lightly tapping against the material. Her body leaned close to the erected structure, looking towards the instructor with an expectant gaze, ready to get started.

So far so good, Adora thought as she waited with anticipation to see the techniques so up close and personal. Not that she had any distanced experiences with watching such dances in any other setting, but there was a certain thrill to learning a new dance style that involved so much risks. Catra really surprised her with this one, but after the initial shock had faded, she honestly felt a little excited to learn something so new—not only out of her comfort zone but out of her skill zone as well.

“We’ll start with a basic climb.” the instructor stated, nodding her head to Catra who braced both of her hands on the pole. “One foot behind.” she led with her right, pressing her ankle behind the dance tool, her foot wrapping around, “The other is going to go in front.” At the cue, her other leg swung forward, holding herself suspended in the air as she hung tight to the pole. “Arm’s move up, tighten up your core, legs follow. Basic climb.”

Adora watched as Catra’s abs flexed in her effort to climb up the cylinder structure, making it look so easy with her fluid movements. A smile spread across her face as she reached the top before sliding herself back down quickly, landing herself with a bit of a jump.

“You’ll have no trouble with this one, will you?” her friend asked as she trotted over to Adora’s body, slapping a hand against her backside to push her closer to the pole and encouraging her to take her turn.

Adora looked back at Catra, watching her for a moment before straightening up with a bit of a glimmer in her eyes, chuckling as she gripped on with her own hands. “Remind me again who was whose ballet partner a hundred percent of the time?”

Sonia let out a soft gasp, “You did ballet?”

Her mismatched eyes went wide to remember those childhood times, flushing at the embarrassing experience of such neat and proper days from long ago. “Adora~ we don’t talk about that.” she warned the blonde, making her laugh as she leaned and swung against the pole.

“Since when don’t we talk about ballet? I remember you were really good at it. Like a graceful, porcelain ballerina.” Now she was getting relaxed, dangerously relaxed as she teased her flustered friend, a nice dose of payback for the dark haired girl.

“No wonder you were such a natural.” Sonia continued to marvel and bask at the idea of her boss as a ballerina which didn’t help the shade of red fade from her face any sooner.

“Agh!” Catra groaned loudly, the sound echoing in the room, “Adora, get up that pole, now!”

Her student’s body leaned over slightly, unable to contain herself as she took back her earlier apprehension when she first walked into the dance studio to find the dancing pole fixed up and ready for use. If it gave her the opportunity to tease her old friend about her ballet days and the chance to see her flustered and embarrassed by the phase, then it was totally worth it to accept this pole dancing class.

Adora had gone through several different maneuvers to get the basic of pole dancing down, the spins and the sits, the climbs and the poses. The longer they went, the more comfortable the blonde became with using that pole like one of those exotic dancers. She was even having a bit of fun with it like she was back on the playground doing tricks on the equipment.

Catra definitely noticed the change in the blonde’s vibes, her movements becoming more natural and fluid. She had the workings of a top-notch pole dancer… if she ever wanted to pursue that kind of lifestyle. But that was Adora, always so talented and full of potential. Although she couldn’t see the blonde working at any type of stripper bars, it was kind of exciting knowing she had something like this notched into her belt. Was it possible to just keep this between them? Was that overstepping their boundary as a platonic friendship?

“Now that you know some moves, ready to try a dance?” Sonia asked eagerly, already standing at the sound podium, readying the song track.

“Sure,” Adora responded with slight glare of determination furrowing her brows and an anticipatory smile filling her lips.

“Great! But, I have to warn you, I do my dances a little differently.” the instructor chuckled, “I’m going to have you listen to the song first, and then you’re basically going to freestyle the whole thing.”

That one threw the blonde for a loop, expecting some kind of routine to follow, not to come up with something on the spot. The unease look flickered in her eyes, a look Catra caught as she eyed the blonde from the side.

“Don’t fret about it so much, princess.” the old friend and reassurance nudged her shoulder gently with her own, taking the first step forward to take hold of the cooling metal, “I’ll go first so you get a bit of a handicap. But I want to see something spontaneous from you.” she stated with a wink, smirking with that oh so familiar gleam that got the blonde through so many difficult times with a single look.

A short chuckle placed the shine back in Adora’s eyes, “Got it,” she nodded her head in acknowledgment as she accepted the task of putting on a good rookie performance for her.

“That’s the spirit! Alright then, here’s what you’ll be dancing to.”

Over the speakers, a slower, male rendition of a love song began to play over the speakers, a song of both undeniable desire and the way it could turn someone to irrationally just to quell that insatiable need to be close. In its original melody, there was more pop, more energy. This felt more… desperate? Melancholic? No, it was like he was drowning in this overwhelming feeling that was consuming him whole—body, mind, and soul. Like this one person threw a wrench into every bit of sanity he had left until he could think of nothing but them.

Adora’s eyes watched Catra as she concentrated on the song, her head nodding steadily as she envisioned her move set that could best paint the picture of the song’s mood. Her face looked peaceful, almost like she was sleeping—like she was dreaming. Maybe it was like a dream. Adora sure did feel like this was a dream, to be back here, learning and experiencing new things with Catra, being pulled along at her pace just like when she had pulled away from ballet. A graceful ballerina with a deadly lioness lying just underneath.

“Okay, got something, Catra?” Sonia’s voice snapped Adora from her trance, blinking as she paid closer attention to the present reality.

Catra’s heterochromatic eyes fell on the blonde, smirking slightly before tilting her head back but keeping her gaze fixed on Adora, beckoning her to watch closely and learn something from the performance.

“Yeah, go ahead and start,” she answered, taking a steadying breath as she heard the first few piano chords.

Her body stepped around the pole, moving slowly, striding as confidently as a feline down her own street. Her hips moved against the object, rolling into it before sliding down the smooth surface, letting it press against her pelvis and fill her inner thighs with its cool touch. Her eyes remained half-lidded, regarding the inanimate object like a sought-after lover before turning the heavy gaze to the blonde, a quick turn placing her in Catra’s line of sight.

Her spine pressed against the pole’s straight line, sliding her body down, legs spread far in her descent, before trailing back up like a slithering serpent. Her head turned, accentuating the bare skin of her tempting neck, the dip of her collar, the valley of her breast and taking it away with a slow spin that hooked her knee around the pole’s perimeter.

Her hands wrapped around the object, pulling her body up and climbing until she was a good distance from the ground before the heat of the chorus could kick in. Suspended in the air, her legs clamped shut and locked on tight, she propels herself into a steady spin, twirling herself slowly, sensually, following the calm yet frantic motion of the singer’s voice as if the were her own words.

Her back curled backward, displaying her incredible level of flexibility and making the blonde question for the umpteenth time in her life whether the old friend had any bones in that slender body of hers. Her legs spread into a straddling split in her upside-down state before swinging those beautifully toned legs of hers back towards the pole, catching herself before her private parts could crash into the solid object. She held the pole with one hand, twirling slowly as she adjusted herself for her descent.

A single knew bent and locked, the other free to mimic its twin without obstruction, she fell back to earth, landing gently on her knees as the first chorus ended. A hand pressed to the floor behind her body while the other still tightly gripped the pole, and with her hips pushed forward and her legs spread to a straddling position, it was like she was presenting herself for Adora, eyes holding tight to her staring, crystal blue gaze before winking to call off the intimate stare down.

The blonde felt like she could breathe again finally as Catra stood back up. She didn’t even realize she was having difficulty breathing as she watched the other’s performance. Up until now, she had seen her friend being lively, energetic, an untamable force of nature on the dance floor. She hadn’t even considered the idea that she could be slow, calculative, alarmingly sensual like a siren’s sweet call. In a way, it felt more dangerous than her usual style. Beautiful, but dangerous.

“Wow, Catra…” Adora pushed out, feeling like such a display deserved something other than speechless silence, “Just… wow. And you seriously just came up with that just now? That was incredible!”

“Yeah?” Catra chuckled, a smirk coming to her lips as she looked towards the blonde. “Well, I could’ve done better if it wasn’t so last minute.” she shrugged her shoulders, as nonchalant and smug as ever.

Adora shook her head profusely, denying to lessen or damper the final result, “No, not at all. Seriously, you were really good.” she declared, her eyes beaming and twinkling with admiration.

Catra’s eyes blinked, taking in the blinding expression while trying to push down the overwhelming fluttering sensation threatening to bubble out from her stomach. She swallowed, calming the feeling before forcing out a laugh to completely deafen it.

“What, are you trying to stall or something?” she teased, moving Adora forward towards the pole to take her turn. “C’mon, I’m counting on you to give me a good show.” Her usual smugness returned in full force, moving back slightly to get the blonde perfectly into her field of vision.

Adora looked back towards her slightly, regarding her friend for a moment before looking towards the object she had just been dancing against. It still felt a little warm, Adora noticed as she clung to its metallic surface, the warmth of its last dancer clinging firmly to its body. She felt the nerves tingle her fingers and run goosebumps along her arms but there was something more to the feeling, an underlying need to show she could catch up—that her dancing could be just as powerful and overwhelming as her old friend.

She wanted to show off, at least just a bit, and give her that “good show” she wanted. She remembered how Catra wanted her to picture her audience, that imaginary person she wanted to move and affect so thoroughly that they could never forget this moment. Well, she didn’t know about imaginary. Was it considered cheating if she used a real reference? Or was that just taking things to the next level?

Whether it was allowed or against the rules, something dark flashed in Adora’s eyes as she gave the signal to start the music. Her performance of the new technique was as rough as a newbie’s could be, but there was also something raw about it: raw like an unspeaking emotion, like an insatiable thirst, like a devastating beast. And those eyes, those dark, blue eyes that were like staring into that beast’s maw, never left Catra’s staring, gapping face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted pole dancing... but the little writer in me wanted it to feel at least somewhat believable... I had done some research on pole dancing to hopefully give it some justice but I'm also worried my dive into the deep rabbit hole of reference searching might have made it a bit rough.  
> I still hope you liked it and I plan to write a little childhood snippet for the two as a little playful breather before the next chapter.  
> As always, you guys are my life's blood and I'm excited to show you what I've got in store for their next little adventure!


	11. Chapter 11

Adora laid on her bed, taking advantage of this lazy Sunday morning as she stared into the ceiling’s blanc paint. She couldn’t get the way Catra looked at her out of her head, evening dreaming about the blank, motionless expression that filled her face. Was that what Catra had been talking about, the kind of reaction when she’s completely captivated someone? When they can’t tear their eyes away and they’re completely helpless, like a sailor slowly falling for a siren’s spell.

It that was, then Adora totally understood why Catra loved that feeling so much. It made her heart thump more than the dance itself—made her head buzz more than hanging upside-down on that pole. She’d be lying to herself if she said she didn’t want to see more of it; that she didn’t want to push Catra further and see how much she could trap the old friend in her snare. Was that bad? I mean, Catra did it, Adora thought, so why couldn’t the blonde give it back to her?

She launched herself out of bed, an idea striking her with a giant _wham_! There was no time to lose. She nearly fell out of her bed in a rush to reach her computer, but then it was taking forever to load up so she had to resort to pulling out a notepad to scratch the thought out before she lost it completely. Unlikely given how brilliant it is, but one in the midst of finals could never be too sure!

“Hey Adora, you feeling up for some…” Bow entered her room, pink apron displayed in all its frilly glory with a frying pan held in her hand, “breakfast?” What he saw was almost terrifying, his blonde roommate tapping away furiously at her keyboard like a madwoman. Tap away any harder and he was sure she’d snap the board in half.

“What was that, Bow?” she turned up to look at him, completely unaware of how her investment made her look to the outside party.

“I was just asking if you want some breakfast.” he said once more with a slight lift of the pan, “I’m making pancakes.”

“Sounds great! You mind fixing me a plate, though, I really can’t leave my desk right now.” she requested with a slightly apologetic look in her eyes for troubling her friend.

“Sure. What are you working on anyway?” he asked, leaning over to look at her monitor slightly.

Adora couldn’t keep the grin off her face, spreading it wide with eager enthusiasm. “I think I just figured out what I want to do for my choreography project.”

The blonde kept herself cooped in her room for the whole Sunday. Not her intention but it was well worth it to get the starting details off the ground. She had her music picked out, the first verse and chorus mapped out in her sketchbook, even decided the outfits they’d wear for the recording. There was just one last thing she needed to do, which honestly, she should have taken care of first before she went scribbling away her part.

She breathed out slowly as she reached for her phone. She didn’t know what she was getting so nervous for, but she supposed, this was a big deal after all. And, if she was rejected she’d be sent right back to square one, scrapping everything she had done today.

“It’ll be fine,” she told herself, “It’ll be just fine…”

Her fingers typed away on the phone screen, sending out a message to her old friend.

“Hey Catra, you have a minute?”

She stared at the message. Too late to take it back now, she’s already read it. A few seconds more and she got back her reply.

“Sure, whasup”

Now this was really happening, it was happening and there was no stopping it.

“Actually, let me first say thank you so much for these past few weeks.”  
“It’s been really great reconnecting and everything.”

“Okay?”  
“Are you trying to disappear on me again?”

Adora felt her face fluster at the misunderstanding. Before she could finish her reply, her phone began to ring with a video chat request. She should answer that, right? She should definitely answer, but it was so sudden that she couldn’t keep her thumb from trembling as she answered the call.

“You take forever!” Catra shouted the second the call connected, sitting on her bed in an overly-warn, loose tank top that dipped down her chest with a few holes in its collar and below her chest. Obviously pajama wear that ought to be thrown out by now but was being milked for a few more washes. “Seriously, what are you typing over there that has to take so long?”

She sounded annoyed, but Adora could tell it was merely masking something else. The blonde had already done this song and dance before.

“I was trying to explain to you that I’m not.” Adora answered, leaning back in her seat as she looked down at her phone.

“Three keystrokes, Adora! N. O. Send!” Catra declared before groaning, pushing the fallen hair strands out of her face, “Sheesh… don’t go scaring me like that…”

Adora felt guilty for worrying Catra like that but, then again, she also felt a twinge of happiness pulling at her heartstrings. Before she knew it, the corners of her lips curled up into a smile.

Catra noticed the beaming smile starting to take hold of the blonde’s face, the twinkling in her eyes becoming more and more apparent with each passing second. “No, stop it. You wipe that grin off your face right now.”

“But I can’t help it! That’s so cute that you want me to stay!” Adora squealed, her cheeks glowing with their rosy red hue as she laughed softly, “It’s like a street cat finally following me home.”

Catra grumbled, rolling her eyes as she pretended that her own lips weren’t turning into a smile of her own. “Whatever, you’re lucky I’m not within swatting distance, otherwise you’d be catching these paws.” she chuckled, adjusting her body to lay on her stomach, “So, what did you want to talk about? Don’t tell me you just wanted to give me that sappy thank you.”

Adora’s eyes became attentive, remembering that the whole start of this wasn’t just to have a casual chat. “Right. I wanted to tell you that I figured something out for that project I was telling you about.”

“Oh,” Catra’s face perked up, not expecting to hear that so soon. “That’s… I mean, that’s great that you don’t have to cram so much.”

Adora laughed, “Yeah right, there’s still a ton of stuff I have to do before I can submit it.” She moved from her desk chair to sit on her mattress, finding it much more comfortable propping her back against the wall. “I was hoping to do a partner dance, so that’ll be even more work.”

The other girl’s eyes looked a bit faded and blurry, making Adora wonder if it was the video’s quality or if something was weighing on her old friend’s mind. “Good for you,” she said, not really disingenuous but it wasn’t quite excited either. “You thought of who your partner will be?”

“Actually, that’s the thing…” the blonde rubbed at the back of her head nervously, “I was hoping you’d do me another favor.”

A brow rose on Catra’s face, “Another favor? I’m going to start charging you.” she warned her, forcing a smirk to stay on her face, “What is it? Need me to hook you up?”

“No, um… I was wondering if you could be my partner.”

The golden and blue eyes blinked a few times, registering how real this was before daring to ask, “Is that even allowed?”

It made the blonde chuckle at the question, “Since when do you care?” she pressed her fingers to her lips, calming her laughter before speaking again, “I’m sure the professor won’t mind. Besides, I kinda already wrote your part for you so… it’s either you or I start over.”

“ _Wow_ , Adora, way to twist my teat!” she laughed, maybe laughed a bit harder than she should, but she couldn’t help herself just as Adora couldn’t help noticing the way her freckled cheeks lit up brilliantly even in the dim light. “You’re so lucky I’m such a generous person.” she stated with a wink that made Adora’s chest tightened.

The blonde chalked up to excitement. Excitement that Catra agreed to partner with her. Excitement for the chance to stand on the dance floor against as equals. Excitement to see Catra play the role she had plotted out in her head. That was the right feeling for it, right? She was just very, very, _very_ excited.

***

Their next session was spent going over the dance routine, Adora taking the lead to show and teach her old friend the dance she had mapped out for the two of them. It felt really nostalgic, reminding the blonde of their ballet days and recitals when they were little. Carelessly spit-balling ideas after ideas to one another until they had something they could both be proud of. They stayed in the studio for an extra hour that time.

“Hey, you doing anything after this?” Catra asked as she put the last of her things away in her bag.

Adora’s attention turned from shoving her notes away into her backpack, “Not really, why?”

“You ever been to a drag show before?” her heterochromatic eyes shimmered with anticipation, already knowing the answer but wanting to milk it out of her.

Adora chuckled, deciding to play along, “No, Catra, I’ve never been to a drag show.” she said in her fakest oblivious tone ever.

“Well then, you wanna go to one? My friend is hosting this one at the Black Garnet… if you want to come with me, it’s cool if you just wanna crash.” Catra dismissed her investment in Adora’s answer with a shrug of her shoulders, acting like it wasn’t a big deal.

Oh, but it was. To Adora, whose eyes twinkled like freshly fallen snow and pure, clear ice in the sun, it was a very big deal. She shook her head quickly, denying her body any rest. She could keep going! If it meant handing out with Catra longer, then she could go all night. Probably shouldn’t, though, but she could.

“No way! I’d rather go with you than crash!” Adora proclaimed with more enthusiasm and zeal than Catra could have expected from the invite.

“Cool,” although her response wasn’t as enthused, it wasn’t any bit less overjoyed to spend some casual time together outside of any work either of them had to do. “They start at ten, so I’ll meet you there.” she further elaborated on their get together, raising up and tossing her bag over her shoulder.

“Yeah, sure. Me too, I’ll meet you there!” the blonde responded, her body following suit and raising her own bad off the floor.

Catra chuckled softly at the girl’s beaming smile, unable to resist how much she reminded her of a puppy being told she was about to go for a car ride. Hell, she’d be ready to accept that the blonde was some giant puppy—over-hyped, over-energized and way stronger than she had any idea of what to do with it—in her past life.

They parted ways in the parking lot, both girls heading back to their respective apartments to get ready for their outing tonight. When Adora got home, she was practically vibrating with cheer, radiating delight as she hummed their song through the apartment door.

“Looks like someone’s in high spirits.” she heard her roommate announce as she placed her keys by the door. “Have fun tonight?” she turned her head to see Glimmer leaning her upper body over the armrest of the sofa.

Adora chuckled, “That’s one way to put it,” she answered.

“That’s good. So, what’re you thinking we should do for dinner? Spaghetti and meatballs, or-” she had to cut Bow short there as she went towards her room to gather a change of clothes.

“Actually, I’m going back out. I just needed to shower and change first.” the blonde called from the hallway.

The two couch buddies looked to one another, a perplexed look quirking their brows because the knew for a fact Adora rarely ever goes out by herself.

“Where to?” Glimmer decided to ask for the both of them.

“The Black Garnet,” Adora peeked her head into the living room from the hallway, “Catra invited me to go see this drag show her friend is hosting.”

Her roommates’ eyes widened, Glimmer’s lips pursing tightly as she pretended that she had a sudden text message that needed her immediate attention. She wasn’t saying anything, she’s not going to say anything. Bow, on the other hand, doesn’t have as deep of a track record as the pink haired girl so he figures he gets a pass.

“So, just the two of you?” he asked as he steadily prodded around the topic.

“I mean, I would assume so,” the blonde answered, her tone trailing off as she thought about the question before her eyes widened in some kind of revelation, “Oh! Should I have asked if you two could come? I’m sure Catra’s friend wouldn’t mind two more in the audience.”

“No!” Glimmer shouted, startling Adora with the sudden outburst, “I mean… we already made plans to watch is one… killer movie, so we’re good.”

Bow instantly caught on, nodding her head with a convincing grin to further their deception, “Yeah, you just enjoy your evening with Catra, we’ll, uh… catch the next one.”

“You sure?” the blonde asked, raising a curious brow.

“Totally! We’re cool with it, so just get yourself ready.” Adora stared at them for a moment longer before shrugging her shoulders, “Alright, if you say so,” she said as she retreated back down the hall, the two releasing a heavy breath the second they heard the bathroom door close shut behind her.

“Ten bucks says she doesn’t make it home tonight,” Glimmer wagered with a mischievous smirk on her lips.

“Glimmer! I would never bet on my best friend’s sex life… Throw in dish duty for a week and you got yourself a deal.” Bow raised her mischievous smirk to a grin, shaking her hand and starting the bet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just one thing for my birthday next Friday, a big'ol fat "COMPLETE" for this fanfic, another notch in my belt of finished stories.   
> Before I knew it, I had already filled out 20+ pages in my notebook for this next chapter so gunna have to split them up. Next chapter is already written, just gotta type it so won't be too long till my next update.


	12. Chapter 12

“Hey Adora,”

Catra met her outside the dance club doors, letting the glow of the neon lights illuminate her figure and emphasize her unmistakable silhouette. Adora’s eyes couldn’t resister their urge to take in the visibly pleasing spectacle from her open black leather jacket and maroon crop top to her black, low-rise legging whose rips along their length provided windows to the girl’s tempting flesh.

“Ever always the early bird, aren’t you?” her voice called her sinful gaze back up to the other’s golden and blue eyes.

The blonde chuckled, a cocky look sending a smug smirk in Catra’s direction. “If I’m the early bird, what does that make you?” she asked, shifting her weight to one foot as she pressed a hand to her hip.

Catra raised a brow in turn, eyeing the blonde silently as she soaked in the familiar, overly confident air. “Get over yourself, princess. It’s natural to be early for your own friend’s show. I’m just out here to make sure you don’t get lost.” she stated pressing a finger to her friend’s forehead.

“How considerate,” Adora laughed, trying to catch the hand only to have Catra pull it back before she could land the grab.

“Naturally,” Catra leaped out of the way, smiling and chuckling at the effort before she began to lead her inside, “C’mon, no point in being early if we’re just gunna dick around outside.”

The blonde followed behind, maintaining a close distance once they stepped through the threshold into the lively nightlife. She couldn’t tell who was here for the show and who was just here for the usual fun night at the club. Well, Adora assumed the crowd would have fun either way. She’s never been to one, but she was sure that drag shows were a fun and exciting event to be at. And, if Catra’s friend was hosting, then it had to be all the more true.

“Hey Wildcat!” a familiar face shouted over the music as the two girls made it to the bar. “Oh! And you’re with Adora tonight! How have you been?!” she asked the blonde with her trademark smile, the beam on her face spelling out her eager desire to jump the bar countertop to approach the blonde in her excited demeanor.

“Oh, pretty good, I can’t complain.” Adora answered with a soft laugh that was drowned out by the thumping bass.

“I bet!” Scorpia exclaimed, “D’aw, you two look so precious together like this, really takes me back to old times… Did you know it’s already been, like, five years since we’ve first met? I mean, sure it was like, once in a while but I just knew we had some kind of connection from day one. Hah, those were the days, right Wildcat? Always so prickly but seeing you two stick together through thick and thin, there was definitely something softer lying underneath.”

“Thank you, Scorpia!” Catra shouted the moment the woman paused to take a breath, unable to stand much more of this before she keeled over and died from the woman’s overly doing friend-mom spiel. “As riveting as all that is… is DT in the back or what?”

“Oh, yeah. But they demanded that no one see them until they got their face on. ‘Don’t want to spoil the magic’ is what they said.”

“Typical…” Catra rolled her eyes with a soft chuckle rumbling through her throat before looking back towards Adora, “Guess I’ll have to introduce you during intermission. But first, get me two of the usual.” she flashed up two fingers with a grin on her lips, watching Scorpia pull out two glasses.

Adora tried to watch the large woman put the drinks together, but much of its construction was hidden behind her large, broad body up until she pushed the two tall glasses up to her friend.

“Two Wildcats for _my_ wildcat.” Scorpia announced as she stuck in two neon straws into each glass.

“Is that joke ever going to get old?” Catra asked as she took the two glasses off the countertop.

“Not in the slightest,” the woman answered with a giggle before being called to help the next customer. She let the girl know that she’d be right with her before looking back at the two, “We’ll catch up more later.” she warned them before bounding her way to spread her cheerful disposition across the bar.

Adora followed the bundle of boundless joy with a small smile before one of the deep red glasses was shoved in her face to take.

“Does milady not partake in spirits?” Catra asked with a raised brow, waiting for the blonde to take her offering.

Adora blew out a short chuckled, “I ‘partake.’” she answered, taking the glass in her hand and placing the straws in her mouth. She took a curious sip before her eyes widened at the flavor: mostly sour but it also left a lingering sweet aftertaste that stuck to her tongue and tickled her taste buds, making her want to sip at is more. “This is really good, what’s in this?” she called out.

The dark haired girl laughed at the blonde’s reaction, “I have no idea! Scorpia came up with it but she refuses to tell me how she makes ’em.” she answered as she sipped away at her own straws, her body rocking to the music’s rhythm and beat.

If anyone would have told Adora a month ago that she would be back in this very same club where she had found her old childhood friend and blew their whole reconnection bit weeks later, enjoying “Wildcats” and rocking to the music while waiting for a drag show to start… she would call the mental ward because she would be pretty sure she had a nut case on her hands. Seriously, what a wild couple of weeks this has been for the blonde. Working through a creative rut with her oldest friend and now working together for the final product, it was absolutely insane. Maybe she’s the nut job because either it was good enough to be true or this has been a very elaborate psychosis episode. Well, if it was a hoax cooked up by her own stress-induced brain, she was going to enjoy every last second of it until she woke up in her hospital bed.

“Ladies and gentlemen and all my lovelies in between,”

The music died down into a soft murmur and the roaming lights found a tall individual who took hold of the small stage area with all their fabulous glory. Their heels echoed in the momentary silence of the crowd, all eyes on them and unable to tear away.

“How’s everyone doing this fine evening?” they asked into a microphone before being greeted by the whoops and yells of the crowd. “Apparently not good enough. Don’t worry, I’ll fix that right up for you.” they teased despite the ear-shattering shouts. They strolled across the stage, letting their faux fur coat billow behind them with each stride.

“If you haven’t heard already, the name’s Double Trouble and you’re in for a wild night.” the effeminate voice turned sultry and seductive at the batted their long lashes for the crowd, receiving a few loving whistles and cries for attention. “But enough foreplay, who’s up for the ultimate drag night?!” The crowd shouted and cheered even louder, making Catra plug one of her ears with a slight smirk on her lips, “Then, without further ado, please give it up… for the lovely, Cynthia Rose!”

The cheering and excitement lingering in the air were as contagious as the flu without the annoying symptoms and bitter medicines. Adora wasn’t sure what she was expecting but she was loving every second of it. At one point, Catra’s friend took the stage, a performance by the host before the start of the intermission. They danced and shimmied their way through the crowd, taking their attention-grabbing tips and slipping them into the cleavage of their dress before making their way over to the two girls.

Catra held their alluring gaze, batting back with one of her own as she flashed a five in their direction. They stepped closer, arms beckoning that she keep her eyes fixated on them before having her slip the bill into the tight space where their tights met their thigh. They blew a kiss towards her and then turned their attention towards Adora, lip-syncing the music to her, singing to her and eyeing her lips a morsel to be saved for later before making their way back to the stage. The blonde needed a big swig of her drink after such intensity, catching her friend chuckling at her flustered expression.

Double Trouble announced the show’s midway break, allowing the performers a short rest to catch their breaths and grab their complimentary drinks from the bar. And of those drag kings and queens making their way to the counter, Double Trouble was the most enthused to close the distance and make their way to Catra’s side.

“Ooh, it’s so good to see you, kitten! It has been _far_ too long! And who’s your tall, blonde and gorgeous friend you brought with you?” they gasped, “A new girlfriend?”

Catra’s eyes widened, coughing up her drink as it went down the wrong windpipe at the sudden misunderstanding, “Goddammit…” she muttered, hardly able to get her voice to work after that one.

Adora started rubbing her back to soothe her, although she was sure it was doing nothing to help fix their misinterpretation of the girl’s current relationship standing.

“Dammit, don’t go spreading shit like that, you trying to kill me?” Catra finally spoke again, holding a hand up to indicate to the blonde that she was feeling better. “This is my _friend_ ,” she watched an immaculately sculpted brow rise on their smirking face, “ _Just_ a friend, like since I was three type friend.”

They didn’t look convinced, the look in their eyes never leaving but they just shrugged their shoulders. Relationships changed all the time, after all, no need to state the obvious for their little flustered kitten. “Right…and does your ‘friend’ have a name?” they asked, speaking to Catra but eyes glued to Adora.

“It’s Adora,” the blonde introduced herself as Catra excused herself to grab another drink.

“Double Trouble,” they returned, extending a hand towards her. She thought it was to shake hands, but when she placed hers in theirs, they brought the hand up to their lips and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it. “charmed,” they added with a wink before releasing the pale hand now flushed to a warm pink.

Her flustered silence amused them, letting a soft chuckle fall behind their hand.

“First time?” they asked, or at least, it’s what Adora could catch with the drumming of her ears.

“What?”

“First time at this sort of thing, sweetheart.” they elaborated, getting a kick out of watching the blonde’s rattled expression. “You seem rather new to the whole drag show scene.”

“Oh, yeah, this is my first one.” she answered, unable to help herself from feeling intimidated by the host. Like looking at a brightly shining star from a couple of inches away, she felt like she was being blinded by such radiating confidence—confidence in who they were and what they wanted.

“And how are you enjoying it? Having fun?” they pushed a strand of platinum hair behind their ear, starting at the blonde for her positive feedback.

“Of course! You all exude this amazing energy, it’s really hypnotic and fun to watch.” she finally smiled, such praises ought to be accompanied by a smile.

Double Trouble giggled, flattered by the blonde’s words, “I’m happy my show gave you such a good first impression, darling.” they gave a wide, bright smile before their eyes glanced back slightly to see Catra trekking back with two new glasses in her hand. “And kitten, you having a fun night with her as well?”

“Catra?” she got an affirmative nod as she confirmed the name, “Honestly, I don’t know if I have the words for it. It’s like I’m living in a fantasy that I could wake up at any moment. But it’s been like that with Catra for a while.”

She had no idea how much her eyes glittered like crystals when she said that; how her gaze turned wistful as she stared into the half-drunken glass of her Wildcat drink. But Double Trouble did, and they hoped that the subject standing right behind the girl heard her well and good.

Catra let out a steadying breath before injecting herself back into the conversation, “DT, are you bullying her?” she teased, stepping next to her friend and keeping her eyes glued on the host. She didn’t know if she could withstand the look in Adora’s eyes if she were to turn and see the blonde’s expression after that little confession.

“Moi? Heavens no! I’ve been nothing but polite!” Double Trouble answered with a dramatic throw of their hand to their chest, “I was merely asking if she was having a good time.”

“Yeah, yeah. Here, Scorpia asked me to give this to you.” Catra stated, handing over the short glass of faded pink liquor.

“Ah! She is such a doll!” they exclaimed happily, giving the large woman a light wave and receiving an enthused wave back.

As they took the glass from Catra’s hand, one of the performing drag queens approached from behind. “DT, it’s almost time for us to get back up there.”

“Alas, duty calls.” they sighed before smiling, “I’ll catch you girls later, ciao!”

And like that, they disappeared into a concealed “backstage” area—really just curtains blocking the way to the back section of a club but it was, at least, literally behind the stage. Adora chuckled softly, the delayed bubbly feeling hitting her as she leaned in closer to her friend.

“You really attract a unique set of friends, don’t you?” she asked, speaking into the girl’s ear. “Your life just got so lively after high school, didn’t it?”

The dark haired girl felt her ear flutter as the blonde’s voice filled her head, overtaking the music for the briefest second before pulling away slightly to check her expression.

Catra looked towards her, her mouth slightly open, ready to speak before any words had formed. Her lips closed, a smile shaping them into a smug, self-confident smirk as she reassured herself of the normality of the situation. There was nothing wrong, nothing different just because she asked Adora out tonight—just because Double Trouble mistook their outing as a date.

“You know me,” she shrugged her shoulders and leaned in close to the blonde’s ear, “I’ve never liked settling for ordinary.”

A shiver raced down Adora’s spine, hitting at her core with a mighty kick as she felt the warm breath hit the nap of her neck, the sweet scent of the mixed drink wafting off the girl. Was this the drink working its magic on her head? She wasn’t sure but there was one way to find out.

“I’m going to grab a refill real quick.”

By the time the show was finished and the drag king and queen were crowned, Adora had made her way through her second Wildcat of the evening and was feeling loose enough to tell her inhibitions to fuck off and get a life somewhere else because the night was too short to waste time thinking about should or shouldn’t she. The answer was she should and she will.

“Catra!” she flung her arms around the girl, cutting into her conversation with Double Trouble as she clung her body close to the other girl, “I’ve been thinking,”

“Oh no,” Catra laughed while the host waited for gold to pour out of the blonde’s mouth.

“Wildcat… Kitten… Why do they get to call you cat nicknames but I don’t get to??” she asked, leaning back only slightly enough to see the girl struggle desperately not to laugh.

She failed, miserably. She didn’t know what she was expecting but that definitely wasn’t it.

“Don’t laugh at me, you brat!” Adora laughed with her as she locked the girl into a headlock, “I’m being serious!”

“Fine, fine, what do you want to call me then?” Catra asked, stumbling slightly while maintaining her balance under the wobbly girl.

The blonde thought for a minute, pressing a finger to her lips before the answer came to her, “Naughty Kitty!”

“Nooo,” Catra’s voice went low as she squeezed out from Adora’s tight hold, “You are _not_ calling me ‘Naughty Kitty,’ pick something else.”

Double Trouble giggled, “I think Kitten may be right. A name like ‘Naughty Kitty’ might only be suitable for the bedroom.” That didn’t help things at all, sending Catra’s face through fifteen iterations of red.

“Ooh, I get it, 'cause it's like a sex thing,” Adora noticed and that just made it worse. The blonde then pouted, “But it fits so well,” she whined as she pressed her body close to Catra’s backside, feeling the softness of her ass slot perfectly into her hips while her nose filled itself with the girl’s scent, “You’ve been nothing but a naughty kitty to me since day one.” she spoke next to her reddened ear and Catra cursed the second she allowed the blonde to grab a second glass.

“Can’t you just call me ‘Kitty’ instead?”

“But you’re my naughty kitty…” she sighed softly into the girl’s neck.

As entertaining as this all was, Scorpia was running a respectable establishment and it didn’t do her club good to have the dancers drunkenly melding in the middle of the dance floor. And, since Double Trouble was already a participating party member, they supposed it was up to them to calm the blonde’s need for her “naughty kitty.”

“Sweetheart,” they called for her attention, watching a blue eye raise up to meet them, “why don’t you call her Kitty outside but Naughty Kitty when it’s just the two of you?”

A brilliant compromise, if Adora’s hazy, liberated mind could say so itself. “Like a secret,” the blonde gasped with delight before nuzzling close into Catra’s wild mane of hair, “I like your friend, Catra! They have such genius ideas,”

“I try,” they shrugged their shoulders taking the compliment despite the scowl on Catra’s face, angry that they would enable such an embarrassing, easily misunderstood nickname.

“Yep, a fucking Einstein,” Catra spat. She’ll remember this and she’ll be sure to pay them back two-fold.

A new song started playing over the club’s speakers and the blonde squealed right into Catra’s ears. “Kitty! Kitty!” she was already starting to use the new name and Catra was grateful she at least remembered to use the censored version, “We have to dance! This is, like, _our_ song!”

Really, it was just the song Catra used during their first session together, but she couldn’t deny there was something a little endearing hearing her drunk friend call it “their song.” Probably other songs that fit the bill better, but, hey, she’ll take it.

“Lead the way, princess.”

A happy gasp left the blonde, leaving her absolutely breathless as she was given the okay to sweep Catra away for a dance. She grabbed her hand, holding on tightly as she led them away to find a good spot.

Catra pointed her fingers towards her eyes and switched them to Double Trouble, a silent warning that payback was eminent and will be swift with retribution!

But they just smiled and waved as her beaming, blonde ‘friend’ led them through the dance floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the first half of their night out, the second half will hopefully be out by tomorrow since most of it is written out already.  
> I've been looking forward to this for a long while so I'm really happy to share it with you all! And I look forward to posting the next chapter as well!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hang on to your butts, we're in for another long chapter and a fun conclusion to the night.

Despite the hazy fog that clouded her mind, despite the occasional stumble that nearly brought her down, Adora was determined to dance, her body refusing to call defeat to her drunken state as she swayed and rocked to the music with Catra standing close to her front. The old friend had wrapped the blonde’s hands in hers, enveloping them in her warm silky touch. It felt so good, everything just felt amazing and right, and it just got even better staring into Catra’s grinning gaze.

She was so pretty when she smiled and laughed, the way her voice rose higher in her breathless cackle took even Adora’s breath away. Such a pretty laugh…

Even closer, the blonde thought in her impulsive mind state, she had to be even closer to her, touching more of her, touching her whole body with her own. She hardly thought about the dance position and how it got her so flustered before. She’s over it. At least for tonight, with two Wildcats racing through her bloodstream, she’s over it.

Adora twirled Catra in her grip, turning the girl’s body to face away from the blonde. Her hands fell to Catra’s hips, pulling her closer until she felt her breasts pressed into the girl’s back and her pelvis pressed firmly into the girl’s ass.

“Someone’s feeling bold tonight. Feeling good there, princess?” Adora wasn’t sure what Catra was talking about. Wasn’t it already obvious that she was feeling absolutely stellar?

She hummed a soft reply into Catra’s hair, smelling her shampoo and feeling the scent push her forward. The dark haired girl’s body vibrated and rumbled as she chuckled softly at the blonde’s mindless stupor, enjoying how her brain was out of commission, leaving her only to feel out the motions and primally rock herself to the beat.

A hand snaked itself down to rest on top of Adora’s hand, guiding it closer to her inner thigh while another moved up to lose itself in the blonde’s silky locks, pushing itself behind the band of her ponytail and loosening it out of its neat hold. Maybe she was a little buzzed herself but she really felt like seeing how far the blonde was willing to go out on the dance floor.

Their bodies rolled and grinded together, far past instruction and delving deep into practice. The blonde led them both, gyrating and thrusting her hips with the pulsing, deep bass that furthered the tingling feeling growing between her thighs. Did it ever feel this good before? Through the experimentations and lessons, did dancing with Catra ever felt this good? Did it ever make her feel hungry like this, dying and craving her more of it—for the song to last all night and then some just to give her an excuse to never pry her body away.

Her dance partner let out a soft moan into Adora’s ear, making an even bigger mess out of her head whose only remedy was to ground herself deeper into Catra’s ass, eliciting a chuckle out of the girl as she turned to face Adora. A dangerous position for both girls as their heavy gazes locked onto one another.

One set of hands kept their hips glued together, a prodding leg pressing itself between the dark haired girl’s thighs, while the other’s hands wrapped around the blonde’s neck and arm. As they moved to the rhythm, pleasured themselves to the beat, their eyes, heated and euphoric, couldn’t move away from one another. Hypnotized in the other’s trance, neither one dared to look away, sharing their lustful gazes and growing more drunk off of it.

Their faces drew closer together, eyes begging to close the distance and fall victim to the dance floor’s spell. It’d be so easy, the blonde thought as she glanced down towards those luscious lips. Just a little bit more and she’d be able to taste-

The song ended and a cold silence splashed over the two girls. The song only lasted for a couple of minutes but, for that short, fleeting moment, it felt like an eternity of staring at the universe. This is what the forbidden fruit must have tasted like, a sweet truth that left her feeling desperate for another bite and another until she consumed the whole tree.

Catra stared at Adora for a moment longer before laughing at the both of them. What were they even doing? What were they going to do? What was she willing to do with her friend in the middle of this thick, dancing crowd? They were gone. So far gone that it wasn’t even funny anymore.

“What is it? Why’re you laughing?” the blonde asked, letting out a few chuckles of her own at the contagious sound.

The girl shook her head, feeling like she really shouldn’t answer that as she stared at her with a slightly more sober smile. “You ready to go home, princess?” she asked as she moved a blonde strand back behind her friend’s ear.

“Mmmm…” Adora hummed as she leaned her head into Catra’s shoulder, continuing the monotone buzz into her neck and tickling the skin there before answering, “One more,”

“One more what? Dance? Drink?”

“I want the funny, red one.” the blonde giggled as she twisted and turned a lock of Catra’s hair around her finger.

Drink it is, the freckles on her cheeks danced with her light laughter, “Fine, one more while I get us an Uber.”

“Yay!” the other cheered as she was escorted back to the bar for just one more.

In hindsight, it was probably not the brightest idea to let her have three Wildcats when she was already stumbling after the second. At least she was calm enough clinging to Catra’s torso, nestling her cheek into the girl’s chest like some giant baby.

“Kitty smells so good…” she mumbled into the fabric of her crop top.

Catra only hummed affirmatively at the statement, hearing it for the fourth time since they got in the car. Honestly, the only reason she was being so patient with this drunk was because she made her like this. Really should have stopped her at two…

“We’re here,” the driver announced, pulling up into the apartment complex’s parking lot and stopping the car.

“C’mon, Adora, get up.” Catra nudged her to sit up, helping her out of the car and having her lean her body against her side to steady the blonde. Wasn’t the easiest of balancing acts but she somehow managed to get the blonde to the apartment’s elevator.

Three sixteen, Catra repeated in her head, apartment three sixteen. She hoped she remembered the number correctly, she didn’t want to show up as some stranger’s door trying to baton pass a drunk blonde onto them. She could probably get away with it with her roommates but definitely not a stranger.

She stopped at the apartment door with its metal plaque displaying its three-one-six number, double checked it three more times before knocking on the door. To her relief, there was someone to answer at nearly one in the morning. Even more so, it was someone she instantly recognized off of Adora’s Facebook page. What was her name again?

“Glitter?”

“It’s Glimmer, actually.  You must be-”

“CATRA!” the blonde rose with rejuvenated life as she recognized the new voice entering her limited conscious space. She seemed rather proud of herself for managing to introduce the two, despite her outburst startling them more than anything else.

“Would you keep it down?” Catra had scolded the blond, needing her to behave herself while others were trying to sleep.

“No angry kitty…shhh…” the blonde whined, petting Catra’s hair and shushing her friend.

Catra let a soft sigh fall from her lips before regarding Adora’s pink haired roommate. “Sorry, she might have gone a bit overboard.”

“No I didn’t,” Adora grumbled as she furrowed her brows defensively, “if anything, I went the right amount of board. Maybe you oughta get on my level.” Neither of them had any idea what the girl was talking about and they felt they never will.

“Yeah, alright. In you go, princess. I gotta get home.” she moved to hand Adora off to her roommate.

“But it’s already so late. Why don’t you just stay the night?” Glimmer offered, already seeing that there was no way she was prying that grip off of the other girl.

Adora gasped, “Slumber party…” she whispered in a wistful tone, “Stay! Kitty can sleep in my room again.” Although this would be the first time they shared a room since high school, she wasn’t too sure how accurate that ‘again’ sounded.

“C’mon, you’re already here. Plus, I don’t think Adora’s going to let you go even if you decided to leave.” Glimmer pointed out with a slight smirk, pointing towards the blonde whose knuckles were turning white with how tightly she held onto her jacket.

“… my kitty…”

Her heterochromatic eyes look towards the blonde that was just starting to get heavier and heavier leaning against her body like this. Well, if she’s going to have this clingy, giant baby glued to her side all night, she might as well make them both comfortable.

“Alright, fine.” Catra conceded to the offer with a soft sigh.

“Yay!” Adora cheered loudly but was immediately shushed by the two girls, making her adjust to a softer volume.

Catra let out a soft chuckle and shook her head at how the woman, always so straight-laced and proper, was coming undone at multiple levels. It was honestly a bit of a magical experience, like seeing a unicorn in an enchanted forest, revealing herself only to the worthiest of maidens. She wasn’t sure how many other “worthy maidens” she’s revealed herself to, but she’d rather not think about it. Luckily for her, he had some other business to preoccupy her head.

“Okay, okay, shoes… you have to kick your shoes off.” the blonde told her, although she struggled with getting her own feet free.

“Hang on,” Catra stopped her before she could bring them both down. She leaned her back against the door and moved to lower herself out of the blonde’s reach. She heard her whine and felt her grip grow tighter, thinking her “kitty” was trying to escape her grasp. “I’m not going anywhere, I’m just taking off your shoes.” she explained as she wrapped her hands around one of her sneakers, starting to pull the foot out, “Don’t actually kick me.”

“I’ll get you both a couple waters.” Glimmer said after making sure her friend’s and her guest’s structural integrity was sound enough to make it through the entryway.

Catra merely nodded her head, popping off the right shoe and moving onto her left.

Adora watched her silently, a knuckle pressing to her lips as she grew more and more entranced by her friend’s hair, in its color and its volume; in the way it moved and swayed beneath her while she worked on freeing the other foot. She was drawn to it, unable to resist petting and running her fingers through the spongey soft, thick locks.

Despite how tightly those same fingers wrung the fabric of her leather jacket, Catra was delighted to find the blonde’s pets gentle, kind, affectionate and lov- she was probably fine stopping at the first three.

“Kitty’s fur is the best…” the girl murmured with a happy hum rumbling in her throat.

Catra laughed softly, “My ‘fur’?”

“…the best,” Adora concluded, not really making it any clearer the second time, nor any less amusing.

She gave another short laugh, shaking her head slightly, “Thanks, I guess,” she responded as she popped her second shoe right off, tossing it to join its twin on the floor. And hey, while she’s down here, might as well get her own shoes off.

“I got the water.” Glimmer announced behind Catra’s back, “I’ll lead you back to Adora’s room if you’ll take her.” she gestured towards the blonde who was slowly falling back into unconsciousness and slipping her way down the door.

“Yeah, sure.” Catra caught her before she could slide down any further, pressing her body against the slab of wood, “Don’t fall asleep here, you doofus. C’mon,” she moved her friend’s arms to hold onto her properly, feeling her weight shift from one side to the other as she leaned onto Catra instead.

Adora’s cheek nuzzled into her freckles before falling onto her shoulder, burying her nose into the nape of her neck. “…Kitty smells so good…”

Five times now, “Stay with me, Adora, or do you want to sleep through the slumber party?” She began to drag her along, following behind the spot of pink down the dark hallway.

“Who’s having a slumber party?”

“We are, we’re having a slumber party.”

The blonde gasped as her fading consciousness returned just enough to make her stumbling steps contribute to her transportation to her room. “Slumber party…”

Glimmer opened the door for the both of them, setting the pair of water bottles down on Adora’s computer before helping Catra move the sluggish blonde onto her bed, the pair letting her collapse onto the mattress to roll around on her sheets and ruin all sense of neatness that was left to its makeup.

Catra sighed as she pressed her hands into the back of her waist and stretched out her spine, feeling like she just finished dragging around a trash bag of sand but worse.

“Looks like you two are good, I left the bottle on the desk there, drink some before going to bed, okay?” Glimmer stated, pointing to the two waters before yawning, “I’m heading to bed, I’ll see you two in the morning.” Before Catra could say anything, the roommate had left out of the room, shutting the door behind herself to conceal her groaning expression, “There goes my ten bucks….” she muttered to herself as she trekked back down the hall into her room.

“Alright, you heard Pinky,” the dark haired girl moved to take one of the waters, “Drink up before you go to sleep.” She twisted the cap off for her before handing it off.

“What? But that’s so boring.” Adora whined, letting her shoulders fall back onto the bed as she nestled herself into her blankets.

Catra raised a brow at her before shrugging her shoulders in a nonchalant manner. “Whatever, more for me then.” she stated as she began to drink down at least a quarter of its contents.

 The blonde stirred, rolling onto her stomach and getting on her hands and knees with an annoyed look in her eyes. “Don’t go hogging it all! Gimme,” she reached out a hand to grab her friend, needing to pull her closer to seize the prize.

“No way,” Catra chuckled, “you said water’s too boring for you.”

“I changed my mind, I’m allowed to change my mind!” Adora declared as she continued to grab at the bottle. Well, trying to, mostly just grabbing air.

“You sure are,” she relinquished her claim to the bottle, giving it to the tipsy friend and watching her chug at it as if trying to prove something to her.

She doesn’t know what drinking down the rest of the bottle was going to do, but she could see in her own determination that the blonde was spilling some of it down her chin. The droplets trickled down her jaw like a cascading stream, flowing down her neck and gathering at the collar of her shirt to soak itself into the fabric. There was a brief through that flashed in Catra’s head, a fleeting image of her licking that water off for her friend, drinking it along with her salty taste.

She shoved it away, filing the thought away as a horny drunk’s fantasy before turning away to remove her jacket. She peeled the sleeves off of her skin, feeling the tingle of her hairs standing up at the sudden chill. She ignored the feeling and hung the article on the back of the blonde’s desk chair. Her hands then moved back again, reaching under the bottom of her crop top and slipping underneath to unhook her bra. After such a long, heated night, it felt good to let her breasts breathe again, slipping the straps off her shoulders and down her arms before pulling the simple, black undergarment out from under her shirt.

Hanging its body over the jacket, she turned her eyes back to see a set of deep blue eyes staring at her, studying her backside and hanging off her every motion. She could feel the gaze searing into her flesh, expelling the chill in her body and replacing it with a burning heat that slowly crept through every inch of her with its merciless flame.

She didn’t show herself bothered, placing a smirk on her lips as she smirked back at the blonde, pressing a hand to her hip as she turned to face her head on. “What, you enjoying the show?”

“Yes,” Adora answered honestly, way more honest than Catra could have expected as it wiped the smirk clean off her face.

She swallowed and tried to put the smile back to her lips but her facial muscles hadn’t finished their reboot yet, leaving her to turn her face to hide the blush she knew full well was on complete display. “You really are feeling bold tonight…” she whispered, moving to turn off the light and flipping the switch.

The blonde just smiled wide, happy to take her observation as a compliment before gesturing with her hand to have her friend join her. “C’mere, Naughty Kitty,” she called her.

“Right, we’re still doing that,” she rolled her eyes but did not refuse as she walked closer to the bed. This wasn’t anything new, they shared a bed all the time back when they were little and well into when they should have out-grown it. As long as she didn’t think anything of it, as long as she kept thinking there was nothing different about it, she’d be fine.

Adora moved the blankets out of the way, letting Catra climb in first before shimmying her way next to her and covering the both of them up to their shoulders. Despite how she wasn’t able to keep her eyes open just a little while ago, she couldn’t find it in herself to close them now. This moment was too valuable, too precious, to close them now. She hadn’t engraved Catra’s form in her mind yet, hadn’t burned the image into her retinas deeply enough to close them now.

“What is it?” her friend asked, unable to keep herself from investigating this spell of silence that had consumed the blonde.

She didn’t answer immediately, instead reaching a hand towards her, combing her fingers through the dark locks and petting her gently. “You’re such a pretty kitty.” she mused softly, keeping up her soft stroking as she continued to lose herself in the constellations on her friend’s face.

Catra breathed out softly, a small smile coming to her lips as she let the girl pet and feel her hair, even feeling a few light scratches against her scalp. “You know I’m not an actual cat, right?” she asked, although she wasn’t opposed to being pampered like one.

“But you are a cat-ra,” Adora snickered at her own joke, finding it way more funny than the butt of it.

A soft laugh busted its way out through Catra’s lips, blowing air towards the other before she lowering her chin to hide the smile. “That really the best you got?” she asked.

“Maybe…”

She let another laugh fly more freely as her gaze turned back up into those blue orbs. “Come back to me when you’ve got something better,”

Adora trace the line of her lingering smile, followed it to count the dark spots that decorated her face before taking in the color of her heterochromia when veiled in the shadow of night. It was all so familiar, a soothing feeling that filled her with more joy than she knew what to do with. Even more so than back then, back when they used to share the blanket and their heat all the time. She must have missed this more than she thought—missed it _so_ much.

“Catra?” she heard a soft hum from the other, “I really like being with you like this. Like, a lot.” There was a better word to give the feeling but she couldn’t think of it at all.

“I know,”

“Like… _a lot_ a lot.” she repeated but the word still wasn’t coming to her.

Catra chuckled in her gentle, affectionate way, “I got it.” she reassured her that her message was getting across.

“It’s like a dream being with you like this…” she whispered, starting to fall again before gasping, “Am I dreaming?” she asked desperately, “Is this real right now?”

“It’s real,” She reached over and pinched the blonde’s cheek slightly to prove her point, “See, real.”

Adora rubbed the tender piece of cheek meat, she definitely felt that, meaning she wasn’t lying to her. “Then… will you still be here when I wake up?”

“Sure, Adora…”

Silence washed over the two girls once more and Catra felt it safe to finally close her eyes to have sleep take her. But it was still too premature as she heard the blonde call for her again.

“Catra,”

“Hm?” she kept her eyes closed.

“Caatraaa” she dragged out her name.

“What?” she peeked an eye open.

The blonde giggled, catching the slight sliver of blue peering at her. “…gimme kiss,”

Catra blinked her eyes open, looking towards Adora with a quirked brow, “Are you still doing that?” she asked, “I thought you grew out of it by now.”

“I never grow out of anything,” she declared proudly, “you weren’t there. But now you are, and I wanna give my naughty kitty kisses.” she grinned, wrapping her arms around Catra’s body and shifting them closer together.

“Oh my god, you are a _terrible_ drunk,” she groaned, feeling Adora’s arms squeeze and envelope her in a warmth too comforting to want to break out of. Fine, she relinquished herself to the blonde’s will. It’d just be like those childish little pecks, nothing worth fretting over.

But she was wrong—oh was she ever wrong. Adora pulled herself closer, inching herself further into her friend’s space before pressing her lips against the other’s.

Before she could register what was going on, what form of velvety softness had consumed her mouth, her friend was moving and shifting under the blankets, pushing a leg between her thighs while the constricting grip around her waist mushed and melded their hips together. This… this wasn’t childish at all! She felt a tongue taste and prod at the space between her two lips before breaking through the gates.

The sweet taste of her drink had faded from her breath, diluted with water and time but still tasted just as delicious and intoxicating as any cocktail. A soft groan escaped Catra’s throat and was quickly consumed by the blonde, too hungry to let anything escape. Her hips bucked away from Adora’s, trying to move away from the growing pressure threatening to compel her to push this further. Anymore, Catra thought, anymore of this and she wouldn’t last much longer.

Thankfully, or regrettably depending on what part she was listening to, Adora pulled away with a light gasp, a sharp inhale to refill her lungs before she started to snicker at Catra’s beat red and speechless expression. “… I kissed the kitty…” she whispered close to Catra’s face, her hot breath hitting her moistened lips and brutally striking the space between her lips while the iron was still dangerously hot.

Her golden and blue eyes just stared at the blonde as she slipped into a dead slumber, stared as sleep took her too early—no, too late—and stared as her chest rose and fell steadily, indicating to her that she was left alone to fret over what just happened. That last one just wasn’t fair. Actually, so much of it wasn’t fair. But, the most unfair thing of all was that she was the one being called “Naughty” Kitty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some good news and some better news:  
> The good news is there are just about 2 or 3 more chapters before this story is complete. I know it's a bit bittersweet when things come to an end but I'm really happy that I'm seeing this through to the end and that it won't end up as an idea that forever stays in my brain or jotted down on a note somewhere. Plus, from time to time, I hope to give a few oneshot chapters within this AU so there's that as well.  
> The better news is that that mature rating is about to come into use soon ;9


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As far as my notebooks are concerned, Dirty Dancing is completely written out. Now comes the fun part! Transcribing my own tiny handwriting to my computer... JOY! Nah, but seriously, I'm really excited to share with you all the last few chapters. Get ready for a Dirty Dancing eventful weekend.

It wasn’t every day that Adora slept in until almost noon, but when she does, she’s clinging onto a warm, soft bundle, her face buried deep into thick, unruly locks that tickle her nose. She was faintly aware of the body she held close to her front, how she curled herself to fit into its backside like they were jigsaw pieces, and how her eyes hid themselves in the curtain of hair to get away from the rising sun peering through her blinds. Just a couple more minutes, she begged the bright ball of gas, just a few more minutes.

“Adora, you up yet?” a voice asked from the doorway as her roommate peeked his head through the slight opening.

He examined the two bodies silently, picking out the sleeping forms meshed so closely together they could almost be mistaken as one before shrugging his shoulders. It wasn’t like the blonde had anywhere to be and it would only be natural she’d want to sleep in after the night she had—briefings courtesy of Glimmer. Besides, the two looked so peaceful sleeping together, it’d be a crime to wake them, right up there with moving a sleepy, furry baby.

He turned away from the room, trying to be as quiet and stealthy in his retreat as possible. Unfortunately, through no fault of his own, one of the lying bodies was already awake, peeking open her blue eye to look towards the shut door. She stared at it, contemplating if she should make the first move or let the blonde sleep some more. She never did message Lonnie that she’s be staying out, but, then again, she highly doubted that her roommate was really worried about that. Wouldn’t be the first time she stayed out without telling her. Where was her phone, even?

She looked across the room, eyeing her jacket still draped over the chair, staring at the pocket with narrowed eyes. Probably in there, she figured, thus too much of a bother to try and reach. She looked around a bit more, catching a closer, more conveniently placed phone sitting by the bed. Adora’s phone, most likely. She reached for it and unlocked the screen to catch the time: three minutes to twelve, nothing new to Catra but she wondered if the blonde still held herself as a proud morning person. She couldn’t see Adora as anything but.

Catra eyed the screen for a moment, seeing the notification of a few unread messages from last night before curiosity got a hold of her. Not for the messages, she didn’t feel the need to go snooping through the blonde’s phone for dirt. No, there was something else that tickled her fancy far more.

She opened the number pad for the phone’s lock screen password before pressing the following sequence: one-zero-two-eight. The screen unlocked, opening the girl to the blonde’s like fitted on this one device. Her lips pressed together, fighting to keep her smile small and unnoticeable, but her lips really wanted to turn themselves into the biggest grin. She tried telling herself that this meant nothing. Maybe Adora just liked those numbers put together. Maybe it was the only sequence her brain could remember at the drop of a hat. A valiant effort but useless none-the-less.

She felt the body pressing to her back start to squirm, pulling her out of her giddy daydreams as she was brought back to the concrete facts of reality. She was still in bed with Adora, still clung close to her body and still left alone to think about that kiss the blonde drunk pressed to her lips.

Seriously, what was with that? Before, it was just a funny little joke just to tease and poke fun at each other, but there was nothing remotely funny or humorous about that “joke.” She couldn’t place actual Frenching in the same category as those playful teases—no possible way she could.

So then, that got Catra wondering, why did she do it? Was it really just the alcohol? Does she just shove her tongue down anyone’s throat when she has enough booze in her? No, even drunk, Adora’s not like that. Catra wanted to believe she wasn’t like that for her own safety. Maybe Catra just pushed her too far, teased her libido too hard and paid the piper for her seductive prodding. Then that meant that was it, right? The blonde got it out of her system and that was all she needed, right? Problem solved.

But that didn’t satisfy Catra at all. No, in fact, she felt a bit disappointed that that was all there was. That after all that teasing, all that poking fun at and eliciting flustered responses from the blonde all amounted to one heated kiss. Did that mean she wanted more? Wanted more of Adora’s grasp holding them firm together? More of Adora’s lips pressing kisses all over her body? Craving Adora’s touch to explore and chart out every inch of her skin, marking each of her more sensitive areas like a treasure map?

She stopped herself before she could sabotage the integrity of her panties anymore than she already had. She had to get out of here, she had to think about this properly someplace where she could cool down and not be distracted by the object of her worries. She was about to pry herself free from the arm wrapped around her waist when she remembered the blonde asking if she’d be there when she woke up. Catra didn’t have it in her to break her word, even if it was just one of the blonde’s many drunken ramblings from the night.

She turned within her hold, moving to face her sleeping friend. Adora stirred at the disruptive motion but did not wake up.

“Adora…” Catra called her softly, “Hey, Adora… it’s time to wake up…” she gently shook at her shoulder.

Adora groaned in protest, her brows knitting together as her veil against the sun was taken away from her. She wasn’t ready to face the light, instead nestling her face under Catra’s chin to escape rousing from her slumber.

Catra pursed her lips together as she stared down at the blonde lightly snoring into her chest. Not helping. “C’mon, princess, I have to get going.” she shook her a little harder.

“Go where?” Adora muttered into the maroon crop top.

“To my place,” she answered, “I have to get home.”

“Home?” Adora’s groggy voice echoed, slowly starting to wake up as her grip started to loosen, “Wait… how’d we get back to my room?”

“We took an Uber here, don’t you remember?” she asked, pushing her blonde hair out of her face and away from tickling her neck.

“That really happened?” Adora moved back slightly, enough to rub the sand out of her eyes and make it easy for herself to open her eyes.

“How else do you think we got here?” Catra chuckled, watching the blonde pull herself out of her daze and join her friends in the world of the living.

Adora just shrugged her shoulders, having no answer for that in her foggy, post-drunken sleep state. She felt the bed dip and shift as Catra climbed out, finally free from the cuddling position. It took a moment for the blonde’s brain to warm up and get her thoughts flowing like smooth butter again, but once they were, she held up a hand at the sight of Catra fishing her phone out of her jacket.

“Wait, I’ll drive you home.” she announced, pulling Catra’s eyes away from the screen.

“You really don’t have to do that.” she told her, turning her body to face the blonde.

“Nonsense,” she called her friend’s consideration as she sat up on the mattress, “It’s the least I can do after last night.” her hand went behind her neck, rubbing at it nervously with an embarrassed blush filling her cheeks.

Catra studied the rosy hue, questioning the meaning behind its existence and wondering what thoughts were going through her head to conjure its existence, what memories were playing behind those flickering, bashful blues.

She turned her head away, grabbing the bra still hanging over her jacket and starting to put it on in the corner. “Fine, just give me a minute.”

Adora felt like she shouldn’t look, that she shouldn’t start as her friend worked to sneakily clasp on the undergarment, but that couldn’t stop her from stealing a few glances at the fleeting backside. Her eyes ran down the shadow of the girl’s spine, down to her hips and the shape of her glutes before pulling her gaze away before she could be caught staring.

The blonde climbed out of bed, walking herself towards the door, “I’m going to the bathroom…” she felt the need to announce her intentions before departing from the room.

She made a turn into the apartment’s restroom but had to double out as she caught a glimpse of something strange in the kitchen. She walked down the hall, needing to double-check her own eyes but there was no change to her vision.

“Glimmer?” she called her roommate from the hall, “Since when do you wash dishes?”

Bow hid a snicker behind his hand as he sat at the dining table with a mug of tea cupped snuggly in her hands.

“What are you talking about?” Glimmer responded with a nervous laugh, “I wash dishes,”

“No you don’t,” the blonde retorted with a slight smirk on her lips, “What? Did you lose a bet or something?”

“What?” Glimmer’s voice squeaked, “Nooo… not at all,” She glanced back at Bow, watching the smug look he was sending her over the rim of his mug. “I’m just feeling… very helpful, is all.”

Adora watched her from a moment before shrugging her shoulders. She could empathize with that. She was feeling pretty helpful herself.

***

“Hey Adora?”

“Yeah, Catra?”

“How much of last night do you remember?”

Adora’s eyes moved from the red traffic light to her passenger, seeing her staring at her, expecting something from her like there was a right answer to this open-ended question.

“Um… why do you ask?” she moved her gaze back to the light, staring at it rather than putting her guilty look on full display.

Catra just shrugged her shoulders and moved her own eyes back onto the road, “Just curious how good your memory is.”

“Okay…” the blonde’s voice trailed off as she tried to remember the events from last night while also being mindful of the navigation’s directions. “I remember DT’s show and meeting them, that’s pretty clear.”

“Mmhm,”

“I got a second wildcat from Scorpia and started bugging your cat nicknames…” the blonde’s voice got a bit softer, growing more nervous as her memories took a longer than desired pause at her insistence on the one name in particular.

“You remember what it was?” Catra raised a brow towards her, a teasing smirk playing on her lips as the tables turned.

“Yes… but I’d rather not say it…”

Her friend giggled, “Feeling shy about it now? But that was all you wanted to call me last night.”

The blonde groaned, “I’m sorry, okay? Can you please not remind me?”

“You don’t have to apologize,” she reassured her, “I’ve been called worse. If anything, Naughty Kitty is pretty tame.”

Adora peered over towards her passenger through the corner of her eyes, remembering some of those “worse” names she’s heard being used to refer to the girl. Even thinking back on it now got her blood boiling and her stomach turning with regret for not knocking the speaker’s teeth down their throat.

“What else?” Catra’s voice brought her back, made her grip relax and ease off the steering wheel.

“Oh, um…I, uh… I remember dancing with you…” she admitted, a feeling bursting in her chest and filling her stomach as she remembered how everything just felt so hot, like a raging inferno was consuming her inside and out. She couldn’t remember the finer details of it; she couldn’t remember what song was playing or her surroundings when she insisted that they dance together, but she did remember their hips grinding together and their gazes locked on one another.

“Yeah?” the blonde glanced over to Catra, catching her move her hair out of the way of her face, her fingers sliding the small bundle behind her ear and giving a better view of her profile.

…Pretty kitty, the phrase flashed in her head, spoken in her own slurred voice, far gone in her own drunken affections. “After that…” Adora tried to piece together the rest, “It’s honestly pretty fuzzy after that. I kept fading in and out after the third. I basically just remember wanting to be really close to you.”

“Nothing else?” Catra asked, shooting her gaze towards the blonde quietly.

“N-No? Why, did I do something?” Adora asked, her eyes flickering between Catra and the road, really wanting to see her face so she could have some idea of what that meant but not wanting to get either of them in an accident before she could find out.

A brief look of consideration flashed in her passenger’s mixed eyes, debating something the blonde couldn’t tell nor see before turning to look outside the window. “No, not really. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“You say that, but-” Adora couldn’t finish the thought as they reached their destination, the GPS telling her to take a right into the apartment complex to reach Catra’s building.

Catra began leading her to the right entry door, drawing the blonde’s mind away from asking any more questions up until they had arrived at the girl’s exit.

“Thanks for the lift,” she told her as she released the safety belt and began to open her door.

“Catra!” Adora called her desperately, feeling lost and trying to work her way back to safety.

She definitely did something last night, something beyond the scope of her own recollection of the evening’s events. But Catra wasn’t giving her any idea what it could be. Did that mean it was too small to worry about or too big of a deal that she doesn’t want to talk about it? It was tearing the blonde apart to know what had happened. What did she do? What did she say?

“C’mon,” Catra responded to her, looking at her through the opened door with a small smile on her lips, “Don’t look at me like that. It was nothing, really.” she insisted but Adora just couldn’t buy it. “I’ll see you Saturday, alright? We still have that thing to finish, right?”

It didn’t feel good enough. She didn’t feel anywhere near satisfied enough to want to let this go. But it was clear Catra didn’t want to talk about it, that she wanted the blonde to drop it.

“Right…” she yielded, hoping that it was just a matter of time before Catra told her what she was hiding.

Catra offered a short chuckle, trying to present herself as fine but it was too dry to feel anything remotely believable, but Adora let it go— _reluctantly_ she let it go. And, as she watched her passenger door being closed shut and watched her friend walk to her apartment building to disappear behind the door, she kept repeating to herself that it was just a matter of time. Catra just needed some time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, I had to drop in some drama towards the end there. Promise I'll make it up to you in the next chapter ;3  
> Also, a bit of a disclaimer, if you remember to drink water before you go to bed drunk, you'll most likely save yourself from a hangover the next morning. Take it from someone who got so drunk once she started crying because "Robbie Rotten is too scary" and "the kittens are too cute." Water saves brains and bodies.


	15. Chapter 15

With the way their apartment was laid out, Lonnie couldn’t get anywhere without passing her roommate’s bedroom. So, it wasn’t like she was being nosy or eavesdropping against the door when she heard the melancholic music playing from the crack in the girl’s door.

“Okay, what?” the girl paused at the sound, looking towards the door before swinging it open.

Catra didn’t notice the door opening or the fact that her roommate was staring at her starfishing body from the door frame. Her eyes were much too focused on the ceiling’s off-white hue, drawing pictures in the shadows of its popcorn finish. Her ears were too focused on listening to the lyrics of the song, her mouth busy lip-syncing the words. And her mind… her mind was much too busy in her own contemplation to spare the idle roommate any thought.

“Okay, what’s this?” Lonnie finally spoke, calling for Catra’s attention.

An eye flickered towards Lonnie’s figure at her door frame before shifting back to the ceiling, “I don’t judge what you do on your days off, so don’t judge me.”

“Who’s judgin’?” she asked as she stepped closer to the large radio system sitting on Catra’s dresser, “I’m just wondering why you’re moping around as someone’s who’s concerned.”

“That’s your opinion.”

“That’s my observation.” Lonnie stated in a flat tone, switching the radio off and plunging the room into silence. Catra’s eyes glared at the girl, going to reach for the radio’s remote but was denied as her roommate snatched it away. “Talk. You’ll feel better after you do.”

The two stared at each other: one waiting for the other to take a hint while the other refused to back down. Finding the glaring wasn’t making the girl groan loudly. “You’re _so_ annoying.” she whined as she sat up on her bed.

“Aw.” Lonnie mocked her complaining tone, “sucks to have someone looking out for you, doesn’t it?” She stepped closer to the girl’s mattress and plopped herself down next to her roommate. “Now spill, I thought things were going really well with Adora.”

Catra’s eyes widened, “Who said anything about Adora?!”

“C’mon, when is it ever _not_ about Adora?” her friend smirked at the flush coming to her freckled cheeks.

“Well, it’s not,” she lied, “it’s… about a friend…” a very obvious lie, but baby steps.

“Alright,” she shrugged her shoulders, “what about this ‘friend’?”

“Well, she has this one friend, a friend of a friend who she had been getting together with lately.” Catra started, keeping her eyes off Lonnie as she gave her story.

“Okay,”

“And, they’re been really having a lot of fun reconnecting and stuff so my friend invited her friend out to a… a movie.” she couldn’t make the story too similar to her own situation.

“Right,”

“And this theater, she had a bit too much of their alcohol to drink so they went back to her place to spend the night. And… while they were together, my friend’s friend… kissed her…” Catra’s voice trailed off into a mutter.

“Adora kissed you?!” her surprise broke through her feigned belief at this “friend’s” story.

“N-Not me!” Catra quickly denied, “My friend!”

“Oh, right, my bad.” Lonnie back-tracked, but the surprise was still evident on her face, “Did, uh, did your friend mention any details about it?”

Her roommate looked towards her with narrowed eyes before looking away, not wanting the other girl to see the heated look rising on her face and in her eyes at the memory of such a sensual, heart-throbbing kiss.

“They were… they were basically making out, tongue and everything.” she admitted, her tone barely above a whisper.

“Damn…” Lonnie whispered, “didn’t think she had it in her…”

“What?”

“Nothing, just thinking out loud.” she corrected herself before her second slip was noticed, “So, why’s this got your friend down?”

“Well, she…” Catra paused for a moment, considered her words carefully to get the right message across, “she’s never really… thought of them like that.”

Lonnie rose a brow at her.

“They’ve been friends for a long time and… there’s no doubt she loves her but I- _she_ doesn’t know if it’s that kind of love or if she just loves her as a really close friend.” Catra began fiddling with her pajama pants, poking and pulling at the fraying threads at the bottom, making the holes along the hem bigger.

Lonnie thought about it silently, looked at her story from every possible angle and took the players into consideration before asking, “Did she like it?”

“Like what?” her roommate asked, her gaze kept downward in her fiddlement.

“The kiss,” the girl’s answer brought the other’s mix-matched stare up, “Did she like it or was it just gross?”

“Um… I guess she liked it. It definitely wasn’t… ‘gross’.”

“Okay, and how sober was she. The friend that was kissed, not the friend doing the kissing.”

Catra clicked her tongue, “Sober enough to be the responsible one,” she answered with a slight roll of her eyes. Even though she couldn’t let loose as much as she usually did, it wasn’t so bad taking care of the blonde. Definitely worse drunks out there than a clingy drunk.

Lonnie shrugged her shoulders with a slight smile on her lips, “Sounds like a bit of a flood gate’s been opened between you two, or, between that friend of yours and that other girl.”

The other looked at her, staring with a perplexed look permeating her brows that silently asked for further elaboration on her words.

“Okay, hear me out, in her right mindset, she liked kissing her, right? If she were to be completely honest, would she say she’d like to kiss her again?” Lonnie asked, her body leaning back slightly on the mattress before eyeing the girl silently.

“I…” Catra chirped, swallowing down the flustered feeling growing in her throat. She had to remind herself that they weren’t talking about her, they were talking about her friend, and it was fine to spill this friend’s business. “I mean, she’s not opposed to it.”

“What about touching?” her roommate continued to probe on, a finger turning and twisting one of her locks.

“Touching could be fine…” They had already been touching each other plenty already.

“And fucking?” she teased with a smirk spreading to her lips.

Catra’s eyes widened with the shock, her face turning beat red as the question spawned the image of the blonde, hair a mess, body glistening with sweat and face completely heated as she stared down at her, studying her bare body with a lustful look weighing heavily in her blue eyes.

“If you have a point, make it!” she shouted, making the image flee from her mind’s eye as she shoved her friend off the bed slightly.

“My _point_ is! If she’s fine with doing all that, and that friend of hers wants her too, then _maybe_ the two of them ought to put those feelings out there!” Lonnie laughed as she stood up from the bed at the sudden shove. “Talk to each other rather than talking to me!”

Catra’s eyes widened as a gasp filled her lungs, “I already told you, it’s not me!” she reached for a pillow sitting at the head of her bed, grabbing it and holding it above her head with the looming threat of its launch.

“Say whatever you want, just hurry up and settle things with Adora already!” The roommate didn’t take the threat seriously, which only spelled her pillowy-soft doom filled with polyester stuffing as the cushion was thrown at her head with precise accuracy.

The blow didn’t matter. For the roommate who had to deal with her mopey attitude, putting it out there was totally worth the headshot.

***

“I think that’s it…” Adora announced, breathless and completely winded after going through the whole song and dance several times to get it right.

“You really think so?” Catra asked, taking a few deep breaths herself from the exerted effort.

“Yeah… just gotta record and edit the video and that’s it…” her eyes beamed relentlessly, sheer joy and relief filling her body as she let her forehead fall onto her friend’s, hugging her tightly, “And it’s all because of you… Thanks, Catra… you have no idea how much this means to me.”

“I could wager a few guesses…” the dark haired girl answered, remaining a bit stiff in the girl’s embrace, her head still mindful of Lonnie’s advice.

Adora felt that her hug might have lasted too long. She must have made her friend uncomfortable by her lack in response, making the blonde quickly release her hold on the girl and stepping back to give her some space. She never did fill in the blanks for her from last week. Actually, the barely talked at all this week. It must have been terrible, she started to assume. If Catra was this affected by whatever it was, then her actions from that night must have been awful. She just wished she knew what it was so she could apologize and make things right again.

“So, um…” she started, running the back of her head and noticing how lax her ponytail was from the hours of work  they put in tonight, “Is it alright if we do the recording here, or-”

“That’s fine.” the other answered before she could finish, “The studio’s closed on Sundays so it’s fine.”

“Oh, good, that’s great. So… is twelve okay with you? You know, just so we have plenty of time to work with.”

“Yeah, sure…”

The silence that followed was long and heavy, nothing like the quiet moments together that they were so used to sharing. Those were timeless, precious, where infinity could pass in the blink of an eye. This… this was just awkward, suffocating and stifling. It turned Adora’s stomach to think that she could feel this way around Catra, that this could be the air she stood in with someone so treasured and dear. It was… this was breaking her heart.

“Um…” she couldn’t stand it anymore,” I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.” she told her as she began her retreat.

“Adora, wait.” Catra called her, turning the blonde’s attention back to her friend, “We need to talk… about last week.” she said with a heavy sigh, opening up her gates and letting her honesty flow through. No teasing, no sarcasm, just a good, honest talk.

“Okay,” Adora nodded her head, happy that her patience was finally paying off as she watched the girl walk towards the wall opposite her mirrors, taking a seat on the floor and asking the blonde to join in on the spot next to her. She obliged the request, plopping herself down and waiting for Catra to start.

“You still want to know what happened, don’t you?” the dark haired girl asked, hugging her knees as she looked towards the blonde. She watched her head nod slowly in response, a solemn look on her face. “What do you think happened?” she inquired, curious to know what a week of isolated contemplation and imaginings had cooked up in that brain of hers.

“I…I don’t know. Something unspeakable…something that definitely hurt you. I must have done something, or said something, despicably ugly to you…” her voice choked out as she gripped onto her sweats tightly, pulling at the knitted fabric with an undeniable glare staring into her fists.

“Then I’ll tell you this first: you didn’t.” Catra told her, reaching a hand over to rest on top of Adora’s, “You know you could never hurt me.”

“But-”

“You really think I would still be hanging out with you if you really had done something _that_ bad?” she chuckled softly, unable to resist the slip but her hand just continued to hold tight to the blonde’s, anchoring her down to reality.

“But then… why are you acting like something did happen?” Adora asked, feeling even more confused by her reassuring words, the guilty feeling completely circumvented by her bafflement.

“Because something did happen.”

“Then what was it?”

At the question, Catra moved her body closer, positioned herself at an ample angle to press her lips to the blonde’s. Adora’s body immediately froze at the contact, her senses much too aware of the softness of her lips pulling and suckling against hers, of the hand whose fingers interwoven themselves with hers to bond them together. The gentle poking and licking of her tongue beckoned for entry, and Adora, completely taken on feeling each and every little sensation, could only willingly give herself to the request.

The taste was so familiar but the feel of it was all Catra. Slow, sensual, like carefully painting a masterpiece on her lips and tongue. The culmination of careful planning, of calculated plotting, all manifested here, and yet it was merely an appetizer whetting the blonde’s appetite and making her hungry for more.

Her other hand thought to move, thought to pull Catra to her lap and taste her whole body. But, before it could act on the thought, those succulent lips pulled away, leaving her empty and her mouth bare.

“I…” it took a moment for Adora’s thoughts to start functioning again, “I did that… to you?”

“Well, yours was a bit more eager. Sloppy even, but yes.” Catra answered with a shrug of her shoulders, “You asked for a kiss and I thought you’d just give me a little one on the cheek. But it turned out you were asking for an adult’s kiss.” she further elaborated, her expression calm like a storm finally passed over her mind. But the blonde… it looked like she was in for some bad weather at the sudden revelation.

“Oh god, Catra, I…” Adora stuttered, “I’m so sorry, I-” but before she could continue to show remorse for her behavior, she felt a slip finger press to her lips, signaling her to stop.

“I don’t need your apology. I already told you that you didn’t hurt me.” she lowered her finger, pressing the hand onto Adora’s thigh, “It was just a surprise, is all. And it got me thinking about certain things—things were really should get off our chests.”

Adora’s eyes flashed down to the hand gripping her own, feeling it squeeze just a bit tighter as the girl in front of her held onto her cool disposition. Despite the growing flush of her cheeks, despite how warm and moist her palms were becoming, she still anchored her resolve, determined to get through the conversation before the anxiety and embarrassment could completely strangle her chest.

“It was probably unfair of me to keep this all to myself to think about on my own,” Catra’s voice drew the pair of blue eyes up past her lips to her averting gaze that continued to look down at their interlocked fingers. “I have a bit of a head start because of it… but I really want you to consider why you kissed me back then. If it was just the alcohol or if you’ve been wanting something more. And, when you figure it out, get back to me. I really want to hear what you come up with.”

The dark haired girl gave one more gentle pulse before slipping her fingers away from their hold. She had done it, said what she needed to say and was now ready to retreat back to her bed and curl up under her blanket to question if she had really said what she did. She had to escape, the full blow of their talk ready to crush her at any second, decimating and pulverizing any sense of composure she had left to dust. However, before she could leave, she felt a hand catch her wrist and hold her back.

“Tomorrow…” was all the blond could muster in the wake of such a huge disclosure on Catra’s part. It really was unfair, unfair to both of them to bottle this up for so long. There wasn’t much Adora could offer her but a prompt response to end the torment of waiting any longer.

“You really don’t-” she couldn’t finish as she turned to meet the blonde’s gaze, her blue, gentle eyes now hardened and set on her own decision. Catra could see that it didn’t matter if she told the girl to take her time, she was going to give her an answer at her promised time. She let the rest of her sentence die in her throat and reform itself in her mouth. “Tomorrow then,” she agreed and the promise echoed in her head.

_Tomorrow._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the fun continues! Told you I'd make it up to ya'll! Hopefully will get up at least one more chapter before calling it a day today so look forward to the projects final result later~


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, Adora's final project and the culmination of all their hard work over the past month. A few point to mention before getting into it:  
> The song they're dancing to is About You by Caravan Palace. I've been obsessing over having them dance to this for... almost a year now! Oh man... how time flies...   
> And two, the middle section is written with the dance's story and their actions. A bit of a different way that I've been writing their dance scenes but I hope you all like it.

She could offer Bow a million thank yous and it still wouldn’t be enough to show her gratitude for his filming equipment. With everything set up and the bright light set on their “stage,” Adora was feeling optimistic about the presentation of the final product.

“Everything set?” Catra’s voice asked from behind, coming into the dance room to meet the blonde after getting herself changed.

“Yep, everything looks-” her words stopped, halted suddenly as she turned to look at the other. Catra hardly ever wore dresses, she had to win a coin toss just to convince her to wear one to their last homecoming dance in high school, but when she did, it was truly a marvel to behold.

She looked stunning in the black satin gown, the bodice hugging her torso and flaunting the curves she was so proud of. A low hanging collar and off-shoulder sleeves presented the temptatiously bare flesh to her eyes, looking smooth and soft under the fluorescent lights. And that slit in her skirt, she was aware that the character she wrote out was a seductive beauty who was fully aware of her outstanding worth but a slit that trailed so high up her thighs was just plain deadly.

Adora swallowed down the lump that had swelled in her throat, pushing it down so she could speak once more. “Good!” she concluded her first thought in loud exclamation, “Everything looks good! Great even!” she stammered.

Catra laughed softly, “Glad you like it.” she told her, taking her momentary stunned silence as the highest form of compliment. She stepped across the polished hardwood floor, the clack of her heels echoing through the air as she strode closer to Adora’s side, looking through the camera herself to see what was all captured in its frame. “The picture looks really good… You said you borrowed this from your friend?” she asked, moving a lock of her hair behind her ear when it fell in her eye.

“Yeah, this is all his equipment.” Adora choked out, trying to distract herself with her roommate and his hobbies rather than focusing on how _delicious_ the girl smelled, like warm apples and honey… “He’s really into this kind of stuff.”

Catra breathed out a short chuckle, “…bet him and ‘Trapta would have a field day if they were put in a room together.” he muttered before straightening up and walking to her sound podium. “I’ll go ahead and get us set up here. Why don’t you go change?” she suggested, giving the blonde an out to allow herself the minute she needed to compose her frazzled mind.

“Sounds good!” she responded eagerly to take the opportunity. “I’ll just be a couple of minutes.” she informed the other, catching her raising a smirking brow at her flustered face before she absconded from the scene.

She swung the door open and let its weight swing itself back shut as she pressed her backside against the wooden slab, focusing on breathing and filling her body with the oxygen she had no idea she was withholding from it. She placed her thoughts on something constructive, something to build back up her mental functions and procedures. She ran through the dance’s introduction in her head, imagined the story she cooked up for its movements and the players that would bring everything to life.

She reminded herself how she wasn’t meant to play the flustered victim. She reminded herself of this fact a she walked herself into the breakroom where she kept her outfit. She was meant to exude confidence, a suave pursuer of love and her lady’s time and attention. She knows her love interest wants her, she knows their feelings of attraction for one another was mutual. It was just about breaking down that defensive wall around her heart and convincing her that she desired her pursuer just as she did her.

The blonde continued to psyche herself up as she changed into the outfit for their recording, as she buttoned the cuffs clinging to her wrists, and as she straightened the button-up blouse and smoothed it out against her body. One final glance to the mirror to check herself from all angles and she was good to go.

“It’s showtime.”

***

The song itself was a duet, some of it a serenade and other parts a rebuttal. For what Adora was trying to achieve, it was perfect. And the electro-swing style to the melody made it even better.

Catra’s part started off the routine, her body rocking and bouncing to the music’s beat as she rested a hand under her chin while an arm wrapped around her chest. She took her role of playing hard to get to heart, her body moving and acting as if she was above her partner, above everything as she held herself above gold and platinum combined. The snap of her body and the flick of her wrist made it clear that she would not be easily impressed.

But Adora was stubborn, too determined to be swayed by the list of reasons she couldn’t have her. She strode closer, entering into the camera’s view from Catra’s side, stalking closer in her black high waisted dress pants and tucked white, button-up collared shirt. Each step flaunted every aspect of her body: her long legs, her strong arms, the swell of her chest, the curve of her hips. She was like a peacock on full display, dressed to impress.

Her hand reached for Catra’s, lifting it to her lips to plant a gentle greeting but was refused the chance at the cue of the music, turning her nose up at the gesture and turning her body away on point. The blonde wouldn’t be discouraged by such rejection, she’s already seen it in the eyes that sized up her body. How they lingered on her form and memorized the blue in her smoldering gaze. It just took a bit of patience before she could get an honest response.

She drew herself closer to Catra’s backside, placing her hands on her shoulder and feeling just how warm and silky her skin was. Adora was tempted to press a kiss to the exposed flesh but now wasn’t the time for such sweet ministrations. She silently mouthed the lyrics into Catra’s ear as she ran her hands down the other’s arms, her fingertips brushing against her breasts as her touch followed the trail to her partner’s hands. She couldn’t tell if the shiver she felt go through Catra’s body was acted as part of her role or if the blonde’s actions were sending tremors down the girl’s spine. Either one could work for Adora but she felt much more drawn to the latter.

Her fingers found their target and her hands grasped onto Catra’s, spinning her body and turning her to face the full onslaught of the blonde’s smirking gaze. Golden and blue eyes widened at the sudden, bold gesture, staring for a moment before smirking herself, allowing the blonde to show her what she had to offer.

Hand interlocked together, they shimmied and kicked and shuffled their legs to the rhythm, their movements synced together in wonderful, glorious harmony. Their feet flew fast and hard under them, but they never looked away from the other’s eyes. Adora trusted Catra wouldn’t kick her in the shins and she knew Catra held that same level of trust as she refused to hold anything back.

If Adora wasn’t so deep in her character’s mindset, she’d burst out laughing at how fun it is to have Catra as her partner. It was why the blonde always insisted that she’d be paired with the dark haired girl. And, when her instructors asked why she was so persistent on having Catra share the dance floor with her, it was always the same response: It just had to be Catra. No one else would do but Catra.

Adora turned Catra’s body in her hand, spinning her until their hips hugged each other and her back pressed against the blonde’s chest. The blonde led the two in their swaying dip in accordance with the song’s melody. One did, Adora’s hand pressed to the side of Catra’s hip. Two dips and Catra’s fingers were running along the side of Adora’s face. But the third, Catra took complete control, much too into sliding her body down the front of Adora’s body to remember that she wasn’t supposed to actually want this—too into the feeling of their minds and body tightly connected to remember that she wasn’t supposed to have so much fun with this. But she did remember. Her eyes snapped out of their trance and her fingers ran a teasing touch along the blonde’s jawline as they moved into the next verse.

There was a difference in the air and movement of Catra’s character between the first and second verses. the character was once so self-assured and confident that the other didn’t deserve her affection, that she was much too good for someone like her. But now, after having a taste of the blonde, realizing how good she was, she was starting to falter. Her movements were desperate to get back to her cool composure, reminding herself that she didn’t need her suitor nor anybody else for that matter. By the end of her part in the second verse, Catra’s movements played off like she was fine, but there was a chink in her armor—a deadly crack on its surface.

It wasn’t much longer until she succumbed to her feelings for the blonde, but Adora’s character was just as wounded from the rejecting blows, dancing with a bit of melancholy to her steps as she snapped to each beat point. Still, as disheartened and hurt as she was, she was still just as desperate to see this through to the end. Just a little bit further.

Their bodies mimicked one another, a perfect mirror of each other, but they resisted their urge to touch. A small distance, maybe an inch apart, was played like miles of space between their fingers. It was too dangerous to touch the blonde, too dangerous to give in to her because she knew she was moments away from finally falling.

And then, it finally happened.

A fake-out by the two dancers, Catra had twirled herself into Adora’s chest as the music slowed to something wistfully magical as a serene air covered the two in a radiant silence. Being in the blonde’s strong, secured arms was just what Catra feared, and what she longed for the most. She allowed the other to dip her body, letting her measure out every inch of her torso in her descent and again as she was brought back up.

Adora twirled Catra’s body slowly, the two of them floating together in this tranquil cooldown. Their arms lowered together, the dark haired girl being wrapped in the blonde’s loving embrace—in her gentle, warm, comforting embrace.

She melted, under such powerful feelings and deep devotion, Catra had melted to the head of their moment and allowed herself the chance to come clean about her true feelings towards her pursuer. She reached a hand back, caressing the blonde’s cheek as she guides their faces closer together. Inches apart, she could practically taste the other’s lips on her own. However, before she could fulfill that unspoken promise, the music’s tone kicked back up.

Their bodies stayed locked together, unable and unwilling to pull away as they continued to dance as one body, rocking and swaying together while their eyes remained glued to the other’s gaze. A quick turn in the music’s tempo and Catra was spun out just as quickly from Adora’s hold, stepping and shuffling her legs and feet in brilliant, synchronized movement.

A hand was offered to the blonde to take, a reward gladly taken for her pursuer’s resilience in the wake of her lover’s biting stubbornness. A hand pressed to Catra’s waist and the two were gyrating and rolling their hips in unison before Adora raised the offering about their heads, twirling Catra to face her. She dipped her dark haired seductress close to the ground, feeling one leg slotting between hers while the other, with the assist of a hand finding its way through the slit of her dress, raised to hug the blonde’s hip.

A playful look flashed between them, their expressions hidden from the camera’s capture, and Catra suppressed a rising giggle from escaping her as Adora held the deep bend. Before the sound could escape her, she was lifted back up into the finale of the song. They moved energetically across the dance floor, exuberant steps and motions filling the studio room with their echoing clacking against the polished surface. It felt like an amusement park ride with how quick and sharp their turns and twists were, filling Catra’s chest with a childish, bubbly enjoyment of the blonde’s assertive leadership.

One more set and they’d be done, one more and the story would be concluded. They kept up the pace, not stopping or slowing down as their finish closed in. A powerful spin sent Catra’s body into three rotations before Adora grabbed her by her waist, fingers digging into the fabric of her dress, and pulled her hard into her chest in a final, finishing pose while the music faded out in the background.

They stared deep into the other’s eyes, drawn into the full palette of their irises. Every shade and brilliant highlight magnified by the post-high of crossing the dance’s finish line. Catra recognized the look in those darkened blue eyes, feeling she was on the receiving end of such a powerful, luring gaze once before. But something felt different about this instance, about that wanting gaze. It was clearer, free of the hazy fog that was brought on by alcohol’s intoxication. The blonde was sober; they both were sober, making the suction of their gravitational pull that much stronger.

Adora moved closer, unable to keep herself from being drawn towards those tempting lips. She deserved a small taste, right? A little nibble to stave off the starvation she suffered through since seeing Catra walk out in that dress.

And Catra would have let her. Really she would. But there was just one teensy, weensy problem.

“Adora,” she whispered her name, “The camera,” she nodded her head towards the staring lens, pulling the blonde out of her trance.

“Crap!” she cursed, releasing Catra to turn off the device’s recording before sighing, “I guess I could just cut that out…” she thought aloud as she made sure the whole dance was caught properly.

Catra watched Adora work silently, eyeing her form and trailing up and down her body. Was there anything in this world the girl _didn’t_ look good in? And the way she completely adopted that pursuer’s persona.. like a hunter on the prowl, never once moving her eyes off her prize. She definitely came a long way from that awkward dance demonstration she showed her back then. They both did if she really thought about it.

She thought about that first drunken kiss. She thought about their second much more sober kiss, and she wondered if there would be a third.

“Hey, Adora?” the dark haired girl called her.

“Yeah?” the blonde responded, preoccupied with screening their recording.

“Did you really think about it last night? About what we talked about yesterday?”

Adora’s body tensed for a moment, gripping the camera tighter than she needed to before a deep breath relaxed her shoulders. “I did,” she answered, putting the device down and removing the distraction. She turned towards the other, setting a serious, unabated look in her eyes.

The look reassured Catra that the blonde really gave it some thought, but did it have to pierce through her chest so brutally?

“I know you said I don’t have to apologize about it, but I really think I should. At least for putting your head in a mess like that.”

“Okay, apology accepted.” Catra answered quickly, wanting to move on from the filler, “Now the other thing.”

Adora stared towards her, taken back by her rushing pace before chuckling softly and shaking her surprise off her face. Of course she would only care about the main event, it was better for the blonde to stall anyway. She stepped closer to the girl, holding her heterochromatic gaze as she closed the distance between their two bodies.

“Okay, so, I thought about it, and I think some part of me was at my limit with all the teasing and flirting and wanted to taste some gratification from it all. Maybe a little bit of payback for making me feel more than what a platonic friend ought to feel.” the blonde started, looking away bashfully at the admittance that she let her primal desires get the best of her in her loosened state.

Catra chuckled softly, “I figured,”

“And the other,” she continued, reaching her hands towards Catra’s waist and slowly, testing-ly, pulling her closer, “wants to take it so much farther…” she whispered in a low, hungry voice, her intentions made clear in her tone.

Catra hadn’t expected the blonde to speak with such boldness, nor did she expect that the sound of her voice alone was capable of sending such a surge of electricity down her spine and right between her legs. But she hid the intensity of the other’s effect on her body, masking the strength of her arousal behind a smug smirk.

“How far are we talking?” she asked with a bit of a purr, her hands snaking up the girl’s arms, up to her shoulders and wrapping themselves around her neck.

Adora’s expression let a playful smirk come to her lips at the invitation, her hands shifting to wrap around her body instead. “Let’s just say… if that camera had stayed on then we’d be recording a whole ‘nother type of video.” she answered, speaking against Catra’s lips as her self-control waned.

“Well… if you’re up for testing that out sooner rather than later… I know Lonnie’s not going to be home for a while.” the other’s voice sunk low to match the blonde’s, thirsting for her and ready to have her already.

“Yeah?”

“…yeah,” the response barely escaped her as she felt the softness of Adora’s lips take her, the distance finally closed and the sweet relief granted.

She didn’t know what it was about the blonde but each one of her kisses tasted better than the last. Maybe she was just learning Catra’s lips faster than she anticipated she could, learning how to draw out every breathless gasp and every mewing moan from her chest. Maybe she was wearing something, like a delicious lip balm that she shared and exchanged with each suckle and nip. Or… maybe it was just in Catra’s head and she just desperately wanted Adora to keep kissing her more and more until her mind was left blank and stupid to everything but her mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it, last chapter out tomorrow (or today, it's already well past midnight at the time of writing this) and it will be the smut chapter. So... just a bit of a warning... the eventual smut is coming.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a difference between writing smut for smut and writing smut after a slow burn: I feel so shy about the latter and I don't know why~~~!

Catra wasn’t sure how they managed to make it to her apartment door. Don’t know how she managed to fit her keys into the slot nor how she managed to distinguish her room from her roommate. She wasn’t allowed a second to breathe the moment they fitted themselves into the elevator, the blonde gluing herself to Catra and pressing kiss after kiss to her lips and cheeks, down her neck and across her collarbone. She was surprised she managed to avoid stripping her in the halls. It was more than she was able to manage, already popping a few buttons off Adora’s blouse to gain further access to her skin.

The door to the bedroom slammed shut behind them, Catra’s fingers locking it as a precaution. She didn’t expect any intrusions but she wasn’t taking any chances either. The trigger clicked into position, fastening the door shut and securing the room for their private use.

Adora’s body clammed Catra’s to the door, chest to chest while a leg probed and pried the other’s legs apart to feel her intense heat against the thigh of her dress pants. Her tongue dove back into the warm sanctuary of Catra’s mouth, a bit unceremoniously as she began to lose her mind in the moment—in Catra’s taste and in her body’s temperature. Sweet, delicious flesh that had been tempting her for practically a month already was not within reach and she intended to have a feast.

The blonde’s body lowered slightly, bracing herself as she lifted the dark haired girl up in one swift motion before pressing her back into the door with a thud. A gasp escaped Catra’s parted lips, looking down at Adora with an incredulous look before laughing at the bold move.

“Show off…” she called her before eating up the smirk raised on Adora’s face.

Her hands held on tight to those soft thighs, her fingers engraving their warmth to memory as they buried themselves in her supple flesh. Her lips fell down to press their loving affections to her chin and down further to her neck. How she had ached to mark up such bare skin… the sight of the first mark—the sight of _her mark_ —lingered on her skin and adding a darker tone to the girl left her feeling more euphoric than any of her lewd imaginings could have prepared her for. She had to have more. She couldn’t stop until the girl’s olive skin was covered head to toe in kiss marks and love bites.

Adora could feel her captive needily working her hips against her body, rubbing for some kind of satisfaction her lower body was desperately craving. The blonde could hardly grasp what her body was doing, just know that she needed to give the girl what she wanted—what she _needed_ to feel just as amazing as Adora was feeling right now. She grinded and thrusted her hips into the others, worming her way to the girl’s nether region and feeling her moistness dirtying her blouse.

Her ears tasted the most delicious moans that fell from Catra’s lips, her hot gasps sending Adora up the wall with boundless longing and desire for more of those pleasured sounds.

She moved away from the door, calling for Catra to hold onto her tightly as the blonde walked them to the other’s bed. She felt her knee sink into the softness of her mattress and comforter before her body lowered to release the girl onto the bed. Her hands now free, they moved to remove her shirt, unbuttoning her top and opening up a window to the white sports bra underneath, to the smooth skin her more conservative clothes always hid away, and to the lines of her tones, tight body that lied just beneath the fabric’s surface.

Catra’s eyes gaped at the visage between her legs, an unblinking stare studying every flex and shift of the blonde’s muscles as she peeled the article off her shoulders; watched her biceps ripple as she shirt was pulled down her arms. She felt short of breath, forgetting how to breathe, forgetting how to think as she stared helplessly at her body. There was only one thought that managed to break through the blockage: that someone this beautiful, something this _special_ , saw something in her that made this blonde goddess want her back. That had to be the biggest turn-on she’s ever felt in her life.

Her arms reached up for Adora, wanting their bodies melded back together, wanting to feel how warm she’s gotten without the pesky shirt in the way. She was not disappointed. She felt a hand reach its way to her backside, finding the zipper to her dress and pulling it down as Adora’s lips continued to worship and adore her skin. Those hands slipped the dress down her body, giving the blonde more to love. Her kisses trailed down further, tasting the soft mounds peeking over her strapless bra as the top of the dress was pulled down to rest around her hips.

Adora’s body leaned back, taking a moment to admire Catra’s form, to appreciate her in this moment. She had seen it before to some extent, the body gained from all her hard work and dedication towards her craft, but she’s never _seen_ it like this. Flushed with the blood and sweat of her arousal, practically glowing in her desire. Beautiful did her no justice. Radiant didn’t cut it either.

Catra let a short chuckle fall, letting the nerves such exposure sets off go in the expelling breath. “Like what you see?” she asked.

The blonde blinked her eyes, coming back from her trance at the question before smiling at the other, her eyes squinting with her beaming grin. “Yes… I love it.” she answered, her body lowering to move her lips closer to her ear, “You’re absolutely gorgeous, Catra…”

Oh, Catra felt something spark inside her, making the area between her legs burn hotter with an unbearable need for attention. That’s new, she noticed, moaning softly into Adora’s ear as her body searched for relief. She felt the chill of the air fall over her breasts, her girls set free by the blonde’s wandering touch. A thumb ran itself over a perked nipple, rubbing and playing with the erected nub. Catra felt a rumbling go through her chest like thunder, her breathing hitching and faltering at the teasing touch.

“Catra… does it feel good?” Adora whispered, listening closely to Catra’s sweet whimpers and gasps.

“Yeah…” the other answered back softly, her fingers holding onto the blankets under her.

“And this…” her lips moved from the space beside her ear t the girl’s chest, wrapping around its hardened body, sucking off and taking in its flavor, “this too?” she spoke between her suckling, indulging in its shape impressed into her tongue.

“Yes!” Catra squeaked, her hips bucking into the blonde, feeling constant shocks starting to assault her needy clit. She couldn’t stand it, she couldn’t take much more of this. “…lower…” she managed to gasp out, “…touch me lower,”

Adora’s eyes flashed up to meet Catra’s, letting the request sink into her brain before the signal went out to her limbs to accommodate. A hand moved itself between the other’s burning hot thighs, feeling their intense heat radiating off her flesh before finding the girl’s panties, a wet mess from her own self-gratification.

“Here?” Adora asked as she pressed her fingers into the moistness that consumed the fabric, finding the girl’s touch-starved clit and making her hips pulse at the sensation.

“There,” Catra declared, “right there.”

The blonde nodded her head at the confirmation, sitting back on the balls of her feet to watch herself pull away Catra’s panties. She marveled at the treasure lying just beneath the cotton surface. Her dripping opening twitched bashfully under Adora’s staring blue eyes. Glistening and shimmering like the sweetest of nectars, the blonde’s mouth watering at the sight.

She felt a nudge at her shoulder, Catra’s feet imploring her to carry on before she went mad, “Haven’t you stared at me enough?” she asked with a soft groan.

It’ll never be enough, Adora wanted to say but kept it to herself as she let a soft chuckle escape from her. “Sorry…” she apologized, running her fingers through the slick, slippery substance, “you’re so wet, Catra…”

Catra’s hips ran with the blonde’s fingers, not wanting to lose their touch so soon, “…whose fault do you think that is?” she asked with a pleasured hum.

“I know… I might have gotten a bit carried away.” Adora admitted, upping her pressure as she gathered the slick onto her fingers. She ran her tongue over the digits, getting a good sampling of Catra’s essence before turning her attention. “Let me make it up to you.”

Her fingers went back down to Catra’s sex, rubbing the pads of her fingertips into her clit and circling the sensitive bud eagerly. The other’s hips rose up to meet her, angling herself just right to show the blonde just where she wanted her. Every so often, her fingers would dip into the girl’s reservoir, sliding over the pulsing pussy to slather the girl in her own slick.

Her responses were absolutely delectable from her bucking hips every time she flicked her clit just right to her contorted faces, eyes tightly shut as she drowned in her pleasure. And her freckles, god those adorable little stars glittered her face, twinkled on her flushed cheeks like the transition of the dusk sky to night. She couldn’t keep herself from pressing gentle kisses to those celestial beings, following the dots to her ear.

“What does my naughty kitty want?” she whispered against her skin before pressing her kisses to the ear’s rim.

Catra opened her eyes at the pet name, spotting the mischievous smirk on Adora’s lips when she used it. DT did say it was meant for the bedroom but she thought the blonde was too embossed by the name to ever use it sober. Apparently she was mistaken, but she couldn’t say she was upset.

Catra’s lips pursed together, moaning softly as her hips buckled, “I thought you didn’t like ‘naughty kitty’…” she purred softly.

Adora laughed softly, “It has its… moments.” she answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders. Besides, there was no shame in here. “But you’re avoiding the question,” she told her, her voice growing low and husky as she moved to press her lips under Catra’s chin, feeling her throat rumble and vibrate in a soft whimper, “Tell me what you want.”

Catra pressed the back of her hand to her lips, her moans rolling up from Adora’s fingers that continued their attentive stroking, feeling herself growing wetter and hotter under their persistent touch. “Adora…” her name fell from her mouth like sugar.

“Mm?” the blonde hummed against her skin, her fingers quickening as her eyes flashed up to catch the twinkling gems that were Catra’s irises, “What is it?” her voice rumbled with delight at the sweet melody pouring from the girl; even more so to think she was the one pulling the music from her.

“I want...” the dark haired girl gasped, her hips rising as she felt Adora’s movements growing harder and faster, nearly catching her inside with each helpless buckle. She stared down at the other’s expectant gaze, watched as she hung off her every whim, determined to give it to her as she liked and spoil her rotten.

She felt the fabric of the blonde’s pants brush against her leg, reminded of its existence and the current nudity imbalance going on here. Now that didn’t seem right to her at all. She reached a hand out to grasp Adora’s wrist before she could lose the thought, wordlessly requesting her pause despite her own body's protest. She held the blonde’s hand there, feeling herself thrust against the still digits to pull out a few good sparks from their fingertips while she attempted to speak.

“Your pants,” she managed, swallowing down her voice to keep in steady, “lose them.”

Adora’s eyes blinked, the request coming up as unexpected but definitely not invalid. The expression faded as a small smile spread her lip, “As you wish,” the blonde chuckled softly, retrieving her hand from Catra’s hold and leaning herself back slightly.

Her shoulders leaned back and her abdominals flexed as she began undoing the button of her pants, as she unzipped them to the white panties lying underneath. There she went showing off again, Catra thought as she eyed the area, sitting herself up on her elbows to reach the blonde’s body. She trailed her fingers down the center of her stomach, dipping into her navel and trailing down to her pelvis before hooking into the elastic band of the girl’s underwear. Her tongue flickered over her lips before her teeth bit into their flesh, chewing on a tasty idea as she felt herself throb eagerly, demanding further attention.

“These too…” she told her in a breathless whimper, snapping the band back into place.

Adora eyed the girl’s fingers silently before nodding her head in obedience. She had to shift her body back to complete the request, slipping herself off the mattress as she went to stand on her own two feet. Her thumbs slipped themselves under the bands of both sets of clothing, pushing them off her legs before standing before Catra to share in their exposure.

A smirk went to the dark haired girl’s lips as her eyes raked down the blonde’s body, seeing how far that blush of hers went before trailing back up to her eyes. She reached her arms out towards her, fingers spread and beckoning to be filled with the blonde’s warmth. “Now c’mere…” she demanded, her body waiting to be reunited with her second half.

Adora’s eyes beamed with affection and love, moving back over the other and colliding her lips to Catra’s. She tasted a sweet chuckle fall into her mouth as the other’s warm arms enveloped her in a heat hotter than the summer sun. She refused to part from the zesty exchange, licking and exploring the moist cavern as she scooched them further up the bed, her hands digging to pull the rest of the girl’s dress off her body and away to the floor.

Catra returned the favor, slipping her fingers under the fabric of Adora’s sports bra and sliding it up the blonde’s body. Their lips slipped away momentarily, only for a brief second as the undergarment came between them but were back together the instant their obstruction was cleared.

“…Anything else,” the blonde panted against Catra’s tingling lips, licking her own of their kiss’s remnants.

“…mm…” the other hummed affirmatively, sliding her lips down to bite at the rosy flesh of her neck. A hand reached for hers, escorting it over her body and feeling her palm and fingers take in the journey as she led Adora’s touch back between her thighs, reminding her of the job she left incomplete. “Here…” she whispered, “I want you inside me…”

Adora felt her own insides tighten at the request, feeling a fresh wave of wetness wash over her at her kitty’s whims. She swallowed down her salivation before nodding her head, her fingers moving across her slick slit. Her middle finger slathered itself in Catra’s feminine fluids, feeling the other’s hips raise to angle her inside. The blonde couldn’t stand to make her wait any longer, finding the girl's entrance and slipping the finger inside with ease.

Catra let out a soft whimper, her lips pursing together as she felt the intrusion. The blonde worked to cover her neck in gentle kisses, sliding the digit in and out of the other’s moist, heated canal. As wet as she was outside and along her labia, Adora found her even wetter deeper inside, pulling out more and more of her juices with each slippery stroke until the sound of it was audible enough for her to hear.

“Amazing…” she breathed against the olive flesh, “It’s so wet inside you… you feeling good, kitty?” she asked, pressing her own moistened lower lips to Catra’s leg. She felt the dark haired girl’s inner walls tighten around her, quivering at the pet name and intriguing Adora to further discover its effects. “You’re so cute,” she continued to whisper into Catra’s ear, making her whine and grip at her flesh tighter, “my naughty little kitty is so cute…”

“Adora…” Catra panted, peeking an eye open to look towards the blonde face, expecting to see some kind of smug, playful smirk pasted to her hips at the effects she was having on her body. But her eyes—her lustfully darkened blue eyes—held nothing but loving affection and the urge to learn all about what turned her on, only following the signals of her responses to satisfy her thoroughly. There were no intentions to mess with her, only to have her taste the sweetest fruits of ecstasy under her observant hands.

“Yeah…?” Adora held on with bated breath to hear what Catra had to say, to know what she wanted.

Catra licked her lips, “…more…” she decided instead to encourage her forward, to have her explore every inch and cervices of her kinks and sweet points.

The blonde looked eager to carry on, to find out more as she slipped a second finger into the girl’s body, feeling her hips tremble and her leg rise and press against her own wetness, prompting her to grind into the dark haired girl’s leg to get herself more.

As she pumped the digits in and out of the girl’s wanting pussy, she couldn’t keep her name off her lips. Her voice gasping out, “Catra… Catra…” moaning through gritted teeth as she continued to rub herself at the rhythm of her own fingers.

She pressed her forehead to Catra’s, letting their moans mix together in a symphony of euphoria and ecstasy. A lovely sound she never wanted to forget, never wanted to let go of as she engraved it and paired it with the gold and aquamarine staring back at her. She couldn’t keep her tongue from shaping the words as her eyes filled themselves with nothing but the dark haired siren that has consumed every bit of her sanity.

“…I love you…”

Catra let the words sink into her head, sink into her heart before a smile spread wide across her lips, choking on her response for a moment as she kept her emotions from bursting like a dam ready to break. “I know…” she panted out, swallowing once more, “I… I love you too…” she admitted to the world—to her world—the fact in her heart that had been long overdue.

***

“So, any plans for summer break?” Catra asked as she laid under the blankets by Adora’s side, her body turned to face the blonde.

“I dunno… maybe I’ll get a summer job at a gym or something. Get some work experience in before graduation.” she mused with a light shrug of her shoulders.

Catra chuckled slightly as such a serious response, but she supposed there was no rest for the golden child. “Is that right? Well, if that’s the case then I might know someplace that could use a few helping hands.”

“Really?” the blonde’s eyes widened excitedly, raising up in the bed slightly at the possible opportunity.

The dark haired girl’s shoulders trembled, trying to keep her laughter soft and short. Although she meant nothing by it, the blonde had assumed she was making fun of her work ethics.

“Are you pulling my leg?”

“No, no, I really meant it,” her giggles died down, breathing out softly as she looked towards the narrowed, blue gaze, “The studio gets busier over the summer break so we’re going to be in the market for some summertime workers… If you’d be interested, that is?”

Adora laughed softly, “Isn’t that nepotism at its worst?” she asked.

“Only if you’re not qualified. Think of it as… networking.” the other answered with a wink of her eye, pulling out another short giggle from the blonde.

“Networking?”

“What? You can network with your girlfriend.” Catra had no qualms about using the “G” word, moving herself in closer to the blonde’s bare body and wrapping her arms around the other’s waist, “I mean… who else would know your qualifications better?”

Adora’s face froze at the term, feeling her face start to burn up as badly as a one hundred and ten degree fever. She couldn’t bear to have Catra see the red hue that was surely becoming her new permanent skin color, her face burying itself into Catra’s neck, whimpering softly as she heard and felt the girl laugh at her.

“What are you getting bashful for _now_??” she asked, petting the back of Adora’s head in a small comforting gesture. She felt the blonde pout her lips against her nap before feeling her set of teeth biting into her skin in retaliation. “Hey! Don’t go biting me just because you’re easily embarrassed.” she stated, trying to push the nipping girl away but she was only pulled in closer, continuing to nip and bite at her neck and shoulders while her fingers tickled at Catra’s side. “Adora!” she yelped as she started laughing uncontrollably, feeling the blonde snicker into her freshly bitten, tingling skin.

Adora never wanted this moment to end, wanting to live in these few seconds on loop, feeling these feelings and experiencing this floating joy forever. Although she couldn’t live this one moment for eternity, she felt there were plenty of other moments for the two to savor. And, in that moment of envisioning the endless possibilities, the blonde wondered to herself: which song should they dance to next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what is up with me and Sundays, we just don't see eye to eye. But I finally finished it to a point where I can be happy with... for now. Then I'll look back on it in like... a couple weeks or month and want to slap myself XP  
> But, here it is, the last chapter of Dirty Dancing. From the first chapter to now, it feels like such a long time ago and my emotional state had seen some low points and some VERY low points, but I'm honestly happy to see this finally completed. Probably one of my biggest accomplishments of 2019. And really and truly, I don't think I would have gotten to this point without your support and admiration for this personal project of mine. I can't thank you all enough for seeing this through to the end with me.  
> So, from me to you, Happy Holidays and have a safe and happy New Year.

**Author's Note:**

> If anyone's curious, you can thank this video for the inspiration bug biting me hard: https://youtu.be/hbfl4Rhsm3w  
> Couldn't help keep imagining Catra dancing like that and couldn't help wanting to write a story based around the idea that Adora and Catra went to dance school together. Anyway, let me know what you think. This is a bit out of my element so I'm curious to know if I was any good.  
> I can't promise when the next chapter will be out, but know that the idea of Adora and Catra bumping and grinding is quite the motivator.


End file.
